Apparatus and Methods for Manicures

ABSTRACT

A method of applying a curable formulation to an object includes positioning an amount of formulation on a surface before curing the formulation, the formulation being curable by an electromagnetic energy. While the amount of formulation remains on the surface, a first amount of the electromagnetic energy may be directed to the formulation to cure a first area of the uncured formulation, while leaving a second area of the formulation uncured. Force may be applied to press the surface onto the object to transfer the second area of uncured formulation to the object. Some or all of the first area of cured formulation may remain on the surface as the second area of uncured formulation is transferred to the object. The formulation may be a nail polish formulation, and the object may be a fingernail of a user.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of the filing dates of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/951,016, filed Dec. 20, 2019 and titled “Pad Printing Apparatus and Methods for Manicures,” and U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/003,936, filed Apr. 2, 2020 and titled “Pad Printing Apparatus and Methods for Manicures,” the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

Nail polish is typically applied to finger and/or toe nails by hand using various coats. A first base coat is often applied to the nail plate, which may serve to protect the underlying nail, as well as to facilitate adhesion of upper nail polish coats to the nail plate. Following the base coat, one or more color layers are typically then applied to the base coat on the nail plate. Then, a top coat is typically applied over the color coat(s) to strengthen and/or protect the nail polish, which may help prevent the nail polish from chipping, flaking, or otherwise being damaged. When nail polish (particularly in the form of nitrocellulose lacquer) is applied in the manner described above, the nail polish typically lasts between two days and a week before beginning to chip and/or flake. Further, when applying a base coat, intermediate color coat(s), and a top coat, the underlying layer may need to mostly or fully dry prior to applying the next layer, which may result in a significant amount of time between application of the base coat and drying of the top coat.

Curable nail polish formulation, which may be also referred to as gel nail polish or gel coats, is a type of nail polish that is cured instead of air-dried. For example, an ultraviolet (“UV”) curable gel coat may be applied manually and then exposed to a UV source, such as a UV lamp or a UV light emitting diode(s) (“LED”) to polymerize or otherwise cure the gel coat. The resulting cured gel coat is often stronger than traditional nail polishes, lasting anywhere between one and four weeks before chipping, flaking, and otherwise being damaged. Typically, gel coat applications are performed at salons or other places of business rather than in the home, at least in part due to the additional hardware required to cure the gel polish.

In view of the above, it would be desirable to have a system that provides for easy, rapid, and accurate application and curing of gel polish to desired areas, such as the nail plates of the fingers, either for at-home or in-salon use.

BRIEF SUMMARY

According to one embodiment of the disclosure, a nail polish application component is for use in a system that includes a nail polish applicator having a hardness. The nail polish application component may include a nail polish formulation positioned on a transfer film, and the transfer film may have a hardness that is equal to or less than the hardness of the nail polish applicator. The nail polish formulation comprises a diacrylate-based resin or a dimethacrylate-based resin, a film-forming homopolymer and a photoinitiator. The nail polish formulation may have a viscosity of at least 200,000 centipoise (cP) or at least 2,000,000 cP at a temperature of between about 20° C. and about 25° C., and at a shear rate of about 10 s⁻¹. The nail polish formulation may be a non-Newtonian fluid having shear-thinning properties, and shear-thickening properties. Alternatively, it may be a yield stress fluid. The transfer film may be formed of a material having a Shore durometer hardness of between Shore OO-40 and Shore OO-70, a Shore durometer hardness of Shore OO-40 or less, or a Shore durometer hardness of Shore OO-10 or less. The nail polish formulation may be curable by electromagnetic energy. The transfer film may be formed of a silicone, a thermoplastic elastomer, a thermoplastic urethane, or a hydrogel, and/or may be formed of a material configured to stretch to match contours of a user's fingernail upon application of force to the transfer film. The nail polish application component may include a protective layer, and the nail polish formulation may be sandwiched between the transfer film and the protective layer, or otherwise the transfer film may be positioned between the nail polish formulation and the protective layer. The nail polish formulation may have a greater affinity to the transfer film than to the protective layer. The transfer film and the protective layer may be formed as continuous tape with areas of the nail polish formulation. The nail polish application component may have a rolled storage condition, and in the rolled storage condition, at least some of the deposited nail polish formulation may be in contact with the protective layer. The nail polish formulation may be applied or deposited as a series of layers, namely a base coat, a color coat, and a topcoat. Each of these layers or coats may compromise the nail polish formulation. For example, the different formulations of the nail polish may be positioned in sequence such that the color coat is positioned directly between the base coat and the topcoat. The base coat may include a pressure-sensitive adhesive (“PSA”). The nail polish application component may include a first support line extending along a length of the transfer film, the first support line having a stiffness greater than a stiffness of the transfer film. The first support line may be spaced apart from the areas of nail polish formulation. The nail polish application component may include a second support line extending along the length of the transfer film, the second support line having a stiffness greater than the stiffness of the transfer film. The areas of nail polish formulation may be positioned between the first support line and the second support line.

According to another embodiment of the disclosure, a nail polish application system may include an applicator pad having a hardness and a nail polish formulation deposited on a transfer film, the transfer film having a hardness that is equal to or less than the hardness of the applicator pad. The applicator pad may be formed of a silicone, a thermoplastic elastomer, a thermoplastic urethane, or a hydrogel. The applicator pad may be formed of a material having a Shore durometer hardness of between Shore OO-40 and Shore OO-70, of Shore OO-40 or less, or of Shore OO-10 or less. The nail polish formulation may be curable by electromagnetic energy, and the system may include an electromagnetic energy source. The electromagnetic energy source may be adapted to selectively cure the nail polish formulation during or after transfer of the nail polish formulation from the transfer film to a user's fingernail. The applicator pad may be optically clear, and the electromagnetic energy source may be adapted to selectively cure the nail polish formulation by transmitting electromagnetic energy through the applicator pad toward the nail polish formulation. The applicator pad may have a curved leading end adapted to contact a user's fingernail. The system may include an active drive mechanism, such as a motor, adapted to drive the applicator pad toward a user's fingernail when the user's fingernail is positioned within the nail polish application system. The active drive mechanism may be adapted to drive the applicator pad in a rolling motion and/or in a linear motion. The transfer film may be formed as continuous tape, with the nail polish formulation deposited thereon. The system may include a first roller adapted to receive a first end of the continuous tape of transfer film. When the first end of the continuous tape of transfer film is received by the first roller, an intermediate portion of the continuous tape of transfer film between the first end of the continuous tape and a second end of the continuous tape may be positioned in direct or indirect contact with the applicator pad. When the first end of the continuous tape of transfer film is received by the first roller, the intermediate portion of the continuous tape of transfer film may be positioned between the applicator pad and deposited nail polish formulation. The first roller may be operably coupled to an active drive mechanism adapted to rotate the first roller to feed the continuous tape of transfer film from the first roller toward a second roller or a waste compartment. The system may also include a finger support adapted to support a finger of a user. The system may further include a sensor adapted to detect boundaries of a user's fingernail when the user's fingernail is positioned within the system.

According to a further embodiment of the disclosure, a nail polish formulation includes a diacrylate-based resin or a dimethacrylate-based resin, having a mass fraction of between about 50% and about 95%, a film-forming homopolymer having a mass fraction of less than about 15%, and a photoinitiator having a mass fraction of less than about 15%. The formulation may have a viscosity of at least 200,000 centipoise (cP) or at least 2,000,000 cP at a temperature of between about 20° C. and about 25° C., and at a shear rate of about 10 s⁻¹. The formulation may include a pigment having a mass fraction of less than about 15%. The dimethacrylate-based resin may be a urethane dimethacrylate. The diacrylate-based resin may be a urethane diacrylate. The photoinitiator may be 2,4,6-trimethylbenzoyldiphenylphosphine oxide. The film-forming homopolymer may be cellulose acetate butyrate. The formulation may also include a reactive diluent and/or a rheology modifier. The formulation may be a non-Newtonian fluid, having shear-thinning formulation and a shear-thickening properties. Alternatively, the formulation may be a yield stress fluid.

According to yet another embodiment of the disclosure, a method includes applying nail polish to a user's fingernail using a nail polish application system. The method may include positioning the user's fingernail at least partially in the nail polish application system, positioning a continuous tape adjacent an applicator of the nail polish application system, the continuous tape having nail polish formulation positioned thereon, and driving the applicator to press the nail polish formulation onto the user's fingernail to transfer the nail polish formulation to the user's fingernail. The continuous tape may be a transfer film. Positioning the continuous tape adjacent the applicator pad may include positioning the transfer film in direct or indirect contact with the applicator so that the transfer film is positioned between the applicator and the nail polish formulation. Driving the applicator may cause the applicator to press the transfer film and the nail polish formulation onto the user's fingernail to transfer the nail polish formulation from the transfer film to the user's fingernail. The applicator may be an applicator pad. The applicator pad may have a hardness, and the transfer film may have a hardness that is equal to or less than the hardness of the applicator pad. The applicator pad may be formed of a silicone, a thermoplastic elastomer, a thermoplastic urethane, or a hydrogel. The applicator pad may be formed of a material having a Shore durometer hardness of between Shore OO-40 and Shore OO-70, of Shore OO-40 or less, or of Shore OO-10 or less. The nail polish formulation may be curable by electromagnetic energy. The method may include activating an electromagnetic energy source of the nail polish application system to transmit electromagnetic energy to the nail polish formulation on the user's fingernail. The applicator pad may be optically clear, and transmitting electromagnetic energy to the nail polish formulation on the user's fingernail may include transmitting electromagnetic energy through the applicator pad. The method may also include using a sensor to detect boundaries of the user's fingernail. Transmitting electromagnetic energy to the nail polish formulation on the user's fingernail may include selectively transmitting electromagnetic energy only to locations on or within the detected boundaries of the user's fingernail to selectively cure the nail polish formulation. The nail polish formulation may include areas of nail polish formulation positioned on the continuous tape. Positioning the transfer film in direct or indirect contact with the applicator pad of the nail polish application system may include positioning a first end of the continuous tape of transfer film on a first roller of the nail polish application system. Positioning the transfer film in direct or indirect contact with the applicator pad of the nail polish application system may include positioning an intermediate portion of the continuous tape of transfer film in direct or indirect contact with the applicator pad, the intermediate portion of the continuous tape of transfer film being positioned between the first end of the continuous tape of transfer film and a second end of the continuous tape of transfer film. The method may include rotating the first roller to feed the continuous tape of transfer film from the first roller to a second roller or a waste compartment after the nail polish formulation is transferred from the transfer film to the user's fingernail. The continuous tape may be a transfer tape, and positioning the continuous tape adjacent the applicator pad may include positioning the nail polish formulation on the transfer tape between the transfer tape and the applicator pad. The method may include driving the applicator pad onto the nail polish formulation to transfer the nail polish formulation from the transfer tape to the applicator pad. Driving the applicator pad may cause the applicator pad to press the nail polish formulation onto the user's fingernail to transfer the nail polish formulation from the applicator pad to the user's fingernail. The continuous tape and the applicator may be provided as a unit, and driving the applicator may include driving the unit toward the user's fingernail

According to yet a further embodiment of the disclosure, a nail polish application component is for use in a nail polish application system. The nail polish application component may include a continuous tape provided in a rolled configuration so that a first portion of the continuous tape confronts a second portion of the continuous tape, and areas of nail polish formulation deposited on a first face of the continuous tape. A protective layer may be positioned on a second face of the continuous tape opposite the first face, so that the continuous tape is positioned between the protective layer and the nail polish formulation. In the rolled configuration of the continuous tape, the nail polish formulation may be in direct contact with the protective layer. The nail polish formulation may have a greater affinity to the transfer film than to the protective layer. The nail polish formulation may have a viscosity of at least 200,000 centipoise (cP) or at least 2,000,000 cP at a temperature of between about 20° C. and about 25° C., and at a shear rate of about 10 s⁻¹. The continuous tape may be a transfer film formed of a material configured to stretch to match contours of a user's fingernail upon application of force to the transfer film. The transfer film may be formed of a silicone, a thermoplastic elastomer, a thermoplastic urethane, or a hydrogel. The transfer film may be formed of a material having a Shore durometer hardness of between Shore OO-40 and Shore OO-70, of Shore OO-40 or less, or of Shore OO-10 or less. The nail polish formulation may be curable by electromagnetic energy. The transfer film may be formed of a silicone, a thermoplastic elastomer, a thermoplastic urethane, or a hydrogel, and/or may be formed of a material configured to stretch to match contours of a user's fingernail upon application of force to the transfer film. The nail polish application component may include a protective layer, and the nail polish formulation may be sandwiched between the transfer film and the protective layer, or otherwise the transfer film may be positioned between the nail polish formulation and the protective layer. The nail polish formulation may have a greater affinity to the transfer film than to the protective layer. The transfer film and the protective layer may be formed as continuous tape with areas of the nail polish formulation. The nail polish application component may have a rolled storage condition, and in the rolled storage condition, at least some of the deposited nail polish formulation may be in contact with the protective layer. The nail polish formulation may be applied or deposited as a series of layers, namely a base coat, a color coat, and a topcoat. Each of these layers or coats may compromise the nail polish formulation. For example, the different formulations of the nail polish may be positioned in sequence such that the color coat is positioned directly between the base coat and the top coat.

According to an aspect of the disclosure, a nail polish application component for use in a nail polish application system includes a cartridge, an applicator at least partially housed within the cartridge, and a tape at least partially housed within the cartridge. A first area of nail polish formulation may be positioned on the tape. In an operative condition, the tape may be positioned adjacent the applicator so that the first area of nail polish formulation faces away from the applicator. A first end of the tape may be coupled to a first support of the cartridge. A length of the tape may be wound around the first support of the cartridge in a rolled configuration. In the rolled configuration, a first portion of the length of tape may confront a second portion of the length of tape. The tape may include a protective layer positioned so that, in the rolled configuration, the protective layer of the tape is in direct contact with nail polish formulation of the tape. The tape may include a transfer film, the first area of nail polish formulation being positioned on the transfer film. The transfer film may be formed of a silicone, a thermoplastic elastomer, a thermoplastic urethane, or a hydrogel. The transfer film may be formed of a material having a Shore durometer hardness of Shore OO-70 or less. The first area of nail polish formulation may be curable by electromagnetic energy. A second area of nail polish formulation may be positioned on the tape, the first area of nail polish formulation and the second area of nail polish formulation being formed of different formulations. The cartridge may include a recess at a bottom end thereof, the recess being sized and shaped to receive a fingertip of a user at least partially therein. A portion of the tape may traverse the recess. In the operative condition, the nail polish formulation may be positioned on the portion of the tape that traverses the recess. A seal may be positioned over the recess, the seal being removable to expose the recess. The applicator may have an arcuate shape. The applicator may include two supports and a central portion extending between the two supports. The cartridge may include a recess at a bottom end thereof, the recess being sized and shaped to receive a fingertip of a user at least partially therein, a central portion of the applicator being aligned with the recess. The central portion of the applicator may extend between a first support of the applicator and a second support of the applicator, the recess being positioned between the first support and the second support. The cartridge may include a supply roller and a take-up roller, the applicator being positioned between the supply roller and the take-up roller. At least one of the supply roller and the take-up roller may rotatable to advance the tape from the supply roller toward the take-up roller.

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, a nail polish application component is for use in a nail polish application system and includes a cartridge. An applicator may be at least partially housed within the cartridge. A tape may be at least partially housed within the cartridge. A first area of the nail polish formulation may be positioned on the tape. In an operative condition, the tape may be positioned adjacent the applicator so that the nail polish formulation faces away from the applicator. A first end of the tape may be coupled to a first support of the cartridge. A length of the tape may be wound around the first support of the cartridge in a rolled configuration. In the rolled configuration, a first portion of the length of tape may confront a second portion of the length of tape. The tape may include a protective layer positioned so that, in the rolled configuration, the protective layer of the tape is in direct contact with nail polish formulation of the tape. The tape may include a transfer film, and the first area of nail polish formulation may be positioned on the transfer film. The transfer film may be formed of a silicone, a thermoplastic elastomer, a thermoplastic urethane, or a hydrogel. The transfer film may be formed of a material having a Shore durometer hardness of Shore OO-70 or less. The first area of nail polish formulation may be curable by electromagnetic energy. A second area of nail polish formulation may be positioned on the tape, the first area of nail polish formulation and the second area of nail polish formulation being formed of different formulations. The cartridge may include a recess at a bottom end thereof, the recess being sized and shaped to receive a fingertip of a user at least partially therein. A portion of the tape may traverse the recess. In the operative condition, the first area of nail polish formulation may be positioned on the portion of the tape that traverses the recess. A seal may be positioned over the recess, the seal being removable to expose the recess. The applicator may have an arcuate shape. The applicator may include two supports and a central portion extending between the two supports. The cartridge may include a recess at a bottom end thereof, the recess being sized and shaped to receive a fingertip of a user at least partially therein, a central portion of the applicator being aligned with the recess. The central portion of the applicator may extend between a first support of the applicator and a second support of the applicator, the recess being positioned between the first support and the second support. The cartridge may include a supply roller and a take-up roller, the applicator being positioned between the supply roller and the take-up roller. At least one of the supply roller and the take-up roller may be rotatable to advance the tape from the supply roller toward the take-up roller.

According to another embodiment of the disclosure, a method of applying a resin to an object includes positioning an amount of resin on a surface, the resin being curable by an electromagnetic energy. While the amount of resin remains on the surface, a first amount of the electromagnetic energy may be directed to the resin to cure a first area of the uncured resin, while leaving a second area of the resin uncured. Force may be applied to press the surface onto the object to transfer the second area of uncured resin to the object, while the first area of cured resin remains on the surface. A second amount of the electromagnetic energy may be directed to the second area of uncured resin that has been transferred to the object to cure the second area of uncured resin on the object. A shape of the object may be detected prior to directing the first amount of the electromagnetic energy to the resin. Directing the first amount of the electromagnetic energy to the resin may include directing the first amount of the electromagnetic energy in a pattern that is an inverse of the detected shape of the object. Directing the first amount of the electromagnetic energy to the resin may include directing the first amount of the electromagnetic energy in a pattern that leaves the second area of uncured resin in a shape corresponding to the detected shape of the object. The resin may be a nail polish formulation. The object may be a fingernail. Directing the second amount of the electromagnetic energy to the second area of uncured resin may include selectively curing the second area of uncured resin. Directing the second amount of the electromagnetic energy to the second area of uncured resin may include bulk curing the second area of uncured resin. The first amount of electromagnetic energy may be directed from a first source of electromagnetic energy, and the second amount of electromagnetic energy may be directed from the first source of electromagnetic energy. The first amount of electromagnetic energy may be directed from a first source of electromagnetic energy, and the second amount of electromagnetic energy may be directed from a second source of electromagnetic energy different than the first source.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a highly schematic view of a housing of a system for providing rapid and accurate application and curing of curable nail polish.

FIG. 2 is a highly schematic cross-section of the housing of FIG. 1 taken along a plane parallel to the side walls of the housing of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an illustration of a typical fingernail.

FIG. 4 is a highly schematic side view of a nail polish applicator pad according to the disclosure.

FIGS. 5A-B are highly schematic top and side views, respectively, of a film of nail polish formulation on a transfer substrate.

FIG. 6A is a highly schematic side view of the applicator pad of FIG. 4 positioned next to the film of nail polish shown in FIGS. 5A-B.

FIG. 6B is a highly schematic side view of the applicator pad of FIG. 4 after the film of nail polish formulation has been transferred to the applicator pad.

FIG. 7A is a highly schematic side view of the applicator pad having the film of nail polish positioned next to a user's fingernail in a first step of a manicure.

FIG. 7B is a highly schematic side view of the applicator pad having partially applied the nail polish in the film to the user's fingernail.

FIG. 7C is a highly schematic side view of the applicator pad having fully applied the nail polish in the film to the user's fingernail.

FIGS. 8A-C illustrate a nail polish applicator pad being rolled over a user's fingernail in sequence.

FIG. 8D illustrates the nail polish applicator pad being moved away from the fingernail in preparation for a curing step.

FIG. 8E illustrates the nail polish on the user's fingernail being cured via an energy source.

FIG. 9A is a highly schematic view of nail polish formulation on a user's fingernail being cured.

FIG. 9B is a highly schematic view of the nail polish formulation on the user's fingernail after a portion of the nail polish formulation has been cured.

FIG. 9C is a highly schematic view of the nail polish formulation after the uncured nail polish has been removed from the user's fingernail.

FIG. 10A is a highly schematic view of a step in a method of pre-curing nail polish formulation prior to deposition on a user's fingernail.

FIGS. 10B-D are highly schematic views of steps in a method of depositing a film of nail polish formulation onto a user's fingernail after the pre-curing method shown in FIG. 10A.

FIGS. 11A-C are highly schematic views of the applicator pad applying a pressure sensitive adhesive (“PSA”) film onto the fingernail as a base coat.

FIGS. 12A-C are highly schematic views of the applicator pad simultaneously applying a pressure sensitive adhesive (“PSA”) film onto the fingernail as a base coat and a film of nail polish formulation onto the fingernail as a color coat.

FIG. 13A is a highly schematic illustration of a nail polish formulation film positioned on a transfer film being applied to the applicator pad.

FIG. 13B is a highly schematic illustration of the nail polish formulation film and the transfer film positioned on the applicator pad.

FIG. 14A is a highly schematic illustration of a film of nail polish formulation positioned on a transfer film and protected by a protective layer.

FIG. 14B is a highly schematic illustration of a plurality of the units of FIG. 14A provided in a stacked configuration.

FIG. 15A is a highly schematic illustration of a continuous tape of transfer film and protective layer having films of nail polish formulation deposited thereon, the tape being in an unrolled configuration.

FIG. 15B is a highly schematic illustration of the continuous tape of FIG. 15A in a rolled condition.

FIG. 15C is a highly schematic illustration of the continuous tape of FIGS. 15A-B loaded into a deposition mechanism.

FIG. 16A is highly schematic front view of the tape of FIG. 15A in an unrolled configuration with support lines provided therein.

FIG. 16B is a highly schematic top-down view of the tape and support lines of FIG. 16B.

FIG. 17A is highly schematic front view of the tape of FIG. 15A in an unrolled configuration with a support layer provided therein.

FIG. 17B is a highly schematic top-down view of the tape and support layer of FIG. 17B.

FIG. 18A is a highly schematic side view of another embodiment in which nail polish formulation is picked up from a continuous tape roll directly by an applicator pad.

FIG. 18B is a highly schematic side view of a cleaning roll of the embodiment of FIG. 18A.

FIGS. 19A-H are highly schematic illustrations of various steps in a method of performing a manicure according to an aspect of the disclosure.

FIGS. 20A-B are highly schematic illustrations of an exemplary cartridge for use in the method illustrated in FIGS. 19A-H.

FIGS. 21A-E are highly schematic illustrations of carious steps in a method of performing a manicure according to another aspect of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A system for accurately applying and curing a gel coat to the nail plates of the fingers or toes may include a housing 10, as shown in FIG. 1. It should be understood that, as used herein, the term gel coat, gel polish, and or nail polish formulation generally refers to any photo-curable nail polish, whether curable by a UV source or by another source. Housing 10 is illustrated generally as a box with side walls 12, top and bottom walls 14, and front and rear walls 16 (rear wall not visible in FIG. 1). Front wall 16 may extend only partially toward bottom wall 14 so that an opening or other entry 18 is provided. Opening 18 may be sized and shaped so that a user may insert one or more fingers and/or toes into housing 10 so that the nail plates of the finger nails and/or toe nails are partially or completely within the housing. It should further be understood that although illustrated generally as a box, housing 10 may take other suitable forms that house one or more of the components described below and that are suitably shaped to allow for insertion of a user's finger(s) and/or toe(s). In some embodiments, opening 18 is preferably sized so that only a single finger and/or toe is insertable into housing 10 at one time. In other embodiments, opening 18 is preferably sized so that multiple fingers and/or toes are insertable into housing 10 at one time. In one example, entry 18 is sized so that four fingers, including the index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and pinky finger are insertable into housing 10 at the same time, with the thumb intended to be inserted into the housing separately. Similarly, it may be preferable to size opening 18 so that all toes may be simultaneously positioned within housing 10, as it may be difficult to insert only a single toe into the housing at a time. Further, a top (or inner) surface of bottom wall 14 may include one or more grooves, recesses, or texturizations so that a finger(s) or toe(s) inserted therein may readily rest on the bottom wall in a substantially static position. For example, in some embodiments, the top or inner surface of bottom wall 14 may include a single finger or toe-shaped recess or indentation or multiple finger or toe-shaped recesses or indentations. In some embodiments, one or more removable trays may be provided. Removable trays may include recesses, molds, or other features to assist positioning one or more fingers in a desired position. For example, one removable tray may be provided for each finger. In addition, as will be clear from the description below, such removable trays may provide for easier cleanup, for example if excess nail polish is deposited on the removable tray. In other words, rather than excess nail polish being deposited on a bottom surface of housing 14 of housing 10, such excess polish may be applied to the removable tray which may be disposable, or otherwise may be easier to clean by virtue of its ability to be removed. Whether or not removable trays are provided, securing devices may be provided to assist in securing the position of a finger or toe positioned within housing 10. For example, one or more straps may be provided to secure a user's finger in a desired position. Such straps may be simple loops of material, whether rigid or elastic. In other embodiments, straps may be able to be tightened and secured in the tightened condition with known fastener means, for example hook-and-loop fasteners such as those under the tradename VELCRO. Other mechanisms may be provided to assist in maintaining the finger or toe in a desired position. For example, one or more finger supports and/or clamping mechanisms may be provided to assist in maintaining the finger or toe in the desired position within housing 10.

FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-section of housing 10 shown in FIG. 1, the cross-section taken along a plane parallel to the side walls 12 of the housing and extending from the front wall 16 to the back wall. Housing 10 may include a camera 20 or other optical device or sensor capable of imaging the finger(s) or toe(s) inserted through opening 18 into the housing. Camera 20 may be operatively connected to shape recognition software or anatomical recognition software configured to identify the outline of a fingernail inserted into housing 10. It should be understood that the terms “finger” and “fingernail” as used herein may also refer to toes and toenails, respectively. Any suitable software, including off-the-shelf software, may be employed to determine boundaries of the nail of the finger and/or toe, including appropriate software available in the open source computer vision library. For example, edge detection computer vision software may be suitable for determining boundaries between the fingernail and the adjacent skin. Other suitable examples may include the use of structured light, a system in which a projector projects a grid or array, such as an array of infrared dots, onto the fingernail, with a camera or other object determining the space between objects in the grid. The use of structured light may assist in providing depth sensing, for example to determine the curvature of the nail in three dimensions (although the curvature of the nail in two dimensions may also be determined). In one example, the grid or array of objects (e.g. dots or lines) may have a known spatial relationship between the objects in the array. When the array is projected from a particular location, the array will deform based on the position and/or distance of the objects within the projection path. The projector may include a reader to view or otherwise “see” the deformed array to assist in determining the three-dimensional contours of the objects onto which the array is projected, or otherwise camera 20 or a similar sensing device may be used to view the projected array to assist in determining depth and surface information of objects onto which the array is projected. As is explained in greater detail below, laser projectors may be provided to assist in curing nail polish, and such laser systems may also be used to assist in depth sensing and/or determining contours of the nail. In other words, if a structured light system is included in the system, the structured light system may include a light sensor which may be separate from, or the same as, the sensor used to detect the boundaries of the fingernail. Similarly, a projector of the structured light system may be separate from, or the same as, the energy source that is configured to cure the nail polish formulation.

Preferably, camera 20 is operatively connected, e.g. by wires or wirelessly, to an application, such as an application running on a mobile phone or other suitable device with a display. However, camera 20 may be otherwise or additionally operatively coupled to software that is within system housing 10 or which is located somewhere other than a user's mobile device. Upon insertion of a finger into housing 10 via entry 18, the user may initiate an application to begin a method for applying and curing gel polish to the fingernail. For example, camera 20 may provide a live feed (or static picture) to a mobile application on a mobile device. Preferably, anatomical or shape recognition software operatively connected to the camera 20, which may be running on the user's mobile device, on software provided with camera 20, or other software otherwise connected to the camera (including software within housing 10), detects the outer edges of the fingernail within housing. The application may overlie the detected outline on the live feed (or static picture) and present the user an option of confirming the accuracy of the detected outline, or otherwise re-initiating the detection process. If the shape detection appears accurate, the user may confirm and continue the method, preferably with little or no movement of the position of the finger within housing 10. In some embodiments, a display serving the same function as the user's mobile device may instead be integrated onto housing 10. In still other embodiments, the detection software may include an algorithm to confirm the shape detection without presenting the user an option of confirming the accuracy of the shape detection. It should be understood that the nail boundary detection may not be solely a single step in which the boundary of the nail is detected, but the detection may be performed periodically, continuously, or substantially continuously so that the boundary of the nail is periodically, continuously, or substantially continuously updated. With such a method, the nail boundary may be rapidly updated over time so that if a user moves his or her finger, the system is able to recognize that movement occurred update the nail boundary accordingly. It should be understood that the speed at which such updating of the nail boundary occurs may be fast enough to provide for real-time or near real-time updates during an application of nail polish, and this continuous or periodic detection may apply to all methods described herein. In other embodiments, instead of or in addition to periodically or continuously updating the detected nail boundary, after an initial detection of the nail boundary, camera 20 or another sensor may track bulk motion of the finger in order to (i) move the nail boundary based on movement of the finger, such as side-to-side translation; (ii) scale the nail boundary based on movement of the finger, such as toward or away from the camera or other sensor; and/or (iii) update the boundary of the nail based on rotation of the finger relative to the camera or other sensor.

Once the outline of the fingernail is confirmed or otherwise detected, an applicator 40 within housing may spray a base coat of photo-curable gel polish onto the fingernail within housing 10. In one embodiment, applicator 40 may include a cartridge or other container housing a volume of the base coat polish that is operatively connected to a nozzle 42 pointed toward the fingernail. The applicator may spray a base coat, for example via aerosol atomization, onto the fingernail, although other methods of application may be suitable, such as pad printing, described in greater detail below. In some embodiments, nozzle 42 may be configured to spray a volume of base coat to cover a large area sufficient to ensure complete coverage of the fingernail, without taking into account the boundary of the fingernail detected using camera 20. In other embodiments, the applicator 40 and/or nozzle 42 may be operatively connected to the shape detection software to direct the volume and spray area of the nozzle to specifically direct the base coat toward the detected fingernail, and away from the skin. In both cases, it is preferable to ensure coverage of the entire fingernail. Any excess spray, for example on the skin of the finger, can be simply wiped off after the base coat is cured. However, it is preferable that the application and curing of the nail polish, as described in greater detail below, is accurate enough to minimize and/or eliminate the need for such wiping of uncured nail polish. If nozzle 42 is operatively connected to the shape detection software to direct the spray of the base coat, it may be coupled to an active drive mechanism, such as a motor, to facilitate the movement of the nozzle. In embodiments in which the applicator 40 and/or nozzle 42 are capable of moving in order to more precisely direct the polish, the applicator 40 and/or nozzle 42 may be coupled to a two- or three-axis motor driven gantry that provides for positioning of the applicator 40 and/or nozzle in any direction in the X and Y axes, for a two-axis gantry, and also in the Z axis, for a three-axis gantry system. It should be understood that any combination of up to three linear degrees of freedom and up to three rotational degrees of freedom may be provided in such positioning systems in order to allow for desired positioning of the applicator 40 and/or nozzle 42.

The applicator 40 and/or nozzle 42 may have any suitable form. For example, the applicator 40 may include one or more re-Tillable cartridges that may be filled with the desired polish. In other embodiments, pods or other containers intended for individual use may be used instead. Single-use pods may provide certain advantages. For example, re-usable applicators may encounter issues with fluid remaining in the nozzle or in other portions of the applicator following a first use, which may result problems during second and later uses. Single use applicators avoid such issues. Further, single use applicators may useful in terms of color choice, as a desired polish and/or colors may be selected for each individual application.

With the fingernail coated with a layer of uncured base coat, a UV source 50 operatively connected to the shape detection software directs UV energy toward the entire detected area of the fingernail, with the limits of the UV energy application being precisely directed within the detected boundaries. Although source 50 is described as a UV source, it should be understood that other energy sources (such as electromagnetic energy sources) may be suitable depending on the type of energy required to cure the various gel polish coats. In one example, UV source 50 may be an apparatus (e.g. a stereolithography apparatus, selective light apparatus, laser curing apparatus, etc.) which includes a static UV source directed onto one or more scanning mirrors (preferably two scanning mirrors), the scanning mirrors being motorized and operatively connected to the shape detection software. The scanning mirrors, which may take the form of high speed mirror galvanometers, may move quickly through various positions to reflect UV energy from the UV source toward all positions on the fingernail within the detected fingernail boundary, such that only the base coat within the detected fingernail boundary is cured, and all other base coat (for example any base coat inadvertently applied to the skin of the finger) remains uncured. In other examples, UV source 50 itself may be motorized and moveable such that the UV source is directed to a single position, with the UV source physically moving along a track or system of tracks such that UV energy is directed to each point within the detected fingernail boundary as the UV sources moves along the track or system of tracks. In this embodiment, the UV source itself (or a component connecting the UV source to the track or system of tracks) may be operatively coupled to the shape detection software in order to direct the UV energy to only the positions within the detected fingernail boundary. It should be understood that the relative positioning of camera 20, applicator 40, nozzle 42, and UV source 50 shown in FIG. 2 is merely provided to illustrate the components, and these components need not be in the positions shown and can be arranged in any desired position, including in some embodiments stacked upon one another. Similarly, although housing 10 is illustrated as fully enclosed other than opening 18, it should be understood that such a configuration may not be necessary. Although in a preferred embodiment, the projection of UV light for curing is performed using a dual galvanometer laser approach, other methods may be suitable. For example, either a digital light processing (“DLP”) projection system or a liquid crystal display (“LCD”) projection system may be a suitable alternative. DLP projection technology may employ an array of mirrors that can be repositioned rapidly to reflect light either to a desired position or onto a heat sink (or light dump). DLP projection and LCD projection technologies are generally known and are not described in greater detail herein.

Since the curing of the UV-curable base coat may be near instantaneous (e.g. thousands or hundredths of a second) following application of UV energy, the amount of time it takes to cure all of the base coat within the detected fingernail boundaries may mostly be limited by the speed with which the UV source is able to direct UV energy to each point within the detected fingernail boundary. However, it should be understood that other variables, including the power of the energy source (e.g. the power of the laser) and the reactivity of the nail polish, may also affect the curing rate. Once the base coat has been cured by the UV source 50, an indication may be sent to the user. For example, housing 10 may be operatively coupled to an audible signal or a visual signal to indicate completion of the curing. If coupled to a display, such as a display on the user's mobile device, software running on the device may display a prompt to the user to remove his or her finger from housing 10, and to wipe off any uncured base coat. If applicator 40 applied the base coat to any areas outside of the detected fingernail boundary, that excess base coat will not have cured because the UV source 50 is limited to transmitting UV energy into the areas within the detected fingernail boundary. As such, the remaining base coat will not have cured and may be readily removed, for example by wiping with a cloth. The user may be instructed to position the finger back inside housing 10 after removal of uncured base coat. However, in other embodiments, the user may leave the finger within housing 10 after curing of the base coat, without removing uncured base coat at this point. Still further, in some embodiments, the application and curing of the nail polish is accurate enough so that no excess nail polish is applied, minimizing and/or eliminating the need for any wiping steps.

If the user removes his or her finger from the housing 10 to remove uncured base coat from the finger, and then re-positions the finger within the housing, the camera 20 may interact with the shape detection software to once again determine the boundary of the fingernail, in the same manner as described above. If the user leaves his or her finger within housing 10, the camera may not need to again detect the boundary of the fingernail, especially if the finger has remained in substantially the same position. In either case, once the finger is within housing 10 and the base coat has been cured and the boundaries of the fingernail are again determined (or otherwise remain determined from a previous step), applicator 40 may spray a second coat, such as a color coat, of photo-curable polish toward the fingernail. Similar to as described above with respect to the application of the base coat, the application of the color coat is preferably completed so that at least the entire detected area of the fingernail is covered with the color coat, with or without aid of a motor to direct nozzle 42 to spray toward the detected fingernail boundary. With the color coat sprayed on top of the cured base coat, UV source 50 again operates to direct curing energy precisely to the areas within the detected boundary of the fingernail. It should be understood that, in some instances, it may be desirable to provide for more than one color coat, in which case the procedure for the second color coat would be substantially identical to the procedure for the first color coat, and so on.

As should be understood from the above description, the precision of the UV source 50 coupled with the detection of the fingernail boundary and the spray of the various coats to cover at least the entire detected boundary, facilitates an extremely fast and accurate curing of the various nail polish coats that may not otherwise be possible with more conventional gel polish systems.

It should be understood that housing 10 may include multiple applicators 40, one for each coat, including the base coat, one or more color coats, and a top coat. Similarly, each applicator 40 may include a dedicated nozzle 42, or a single nozzle may be operatively connected to each applicator. In some embodiments, applicators 40 may be configured to receive pre-filled cartridges of the base coat, color coat(s), and top coat. It should be understood that, although manicures herein are generally described as including a base coat, one or more color coats, and a top coat, the technologies described herein may apply to any desired coat, unless explicitly noted otherwise. Still further, in some embodiments, a combined coat or an all-in-one coat. For example, a single coat may be formulated to serve as one or more of a base coat, a color coat, and a top coat. In one example, a single coat of an all-in-one nail polish formulation may be suitable for a manicure instead of individual base, color, and top coats.

Once the color coat has been cured by the UV source 50, the user optionally may remove his or her finger from housing 10 and wipe off any uncured color coat, re-insert the finger into the housing, and confirm that the camera 20 and connected software again detects the appropriate boundaries of the fingernail. If this step is to be performed, the user may be provided instructions, for example via the user's mobile device. Otherwise, the user may leave the finger positioned in place after the color coat has cured, which may obviate the need for re-detecting the boundaries of the fingernail, particularly if the finger has not changed positions.

The process may be repeated for a photo-curable top coat, with the top coat being sprayed from an applicator 40 via nozzle 42 to cover at least the areas of the detected fingernail boundary in the same fashion described above for the base coat and color coat. Again, based on the detected fingernail boundaries, UV source 50 may be precisely directed to cure the top coat only within the detected boundaries of the fingernail. When the top coat curing is complete, the user may be instructed, for example via the user's mobile device, to remove his or her finger and remove any uncured top coat (as well as any uncured base coat and color coat if the finger has remained within the housing between each coating step) from the finger. As with the base coat and color coat, because only the various coats within the detected boundary of the fingernail have been cured, wiping away uncured coat may be readily performed using a cloth or other cleaning wipe.

In the example provided above, a single fingernail is completed after application, curing, and wiping away uncured base coat, color coat(s), and top coat. After completion of a first finger, the user may be instructed to insert the next finger into the housing, with the process described above completed for the second finger, and the remaining fingers desired to be polished. In other examples, two or more fingers may be inserted into housing 10 at the same time, with the shape detection software detecting each fingernail boundary, and the coats may be applied to and cured for all fingers within the housing prior to proceeding to the next coat. In other words, the base coat may be sprayed onto all fingernails and cured prior to spraying the color coat onto any finger. Still further, although the exemplary method described above is described as requiring user interaction following each coat application, such user interaction may not be required. For example, once the user's finger is positioned within housing 10, the user may perform a single action, such as pressing a button, after which the base coat, color coat(s), and/or top coat may be applied without requiring user interaction between each application. In still other embodiments, the procedure may be fully automated such that the user need not interact with the system at all once the user places his or her finger in the appropriate position. In some embodiments, any action(s) of cleaning or wiping away any nail polish formulation positioned on the user's skin outside the boundary of the fingernail may be performed automatically. For example, a sponge, wipe, or other applicator may be moved by the system over the user's finger, and that applicator may include a solvent or other material for assisting in wiping away any nail polish deposited on the user's skin outside the fingernail.

Although any desired color may be available for use in the systems described herein, various methods of color mixing may be used to achieve a large range of colors with various mixing techniques. For example, one or more partially transparent color pigments may be layered on top of one another to achieve a desired mix. In other example, a neutral density transparent layer of polish may be applied on top of a color layer in order to achieve a shade different from the underlying color. For example, a bright red base pigment may be provided in a single-use container, and one or more neutral density transparent layers may be applied over the bright red base to achieve a desired shade different from the base pigment.

It should be understood that, in some embodiments, one or more of the coating steps described herein may be omitted from the process. In other words, skipping or otherwise omitting one or more of the base coat step, the color coat step(s), and the top coat step is still within the scope of the invention. For example, although the base coat and top coat may be generally useful, it is envisioned that the processes described above and below may be performed with only a curable color coat in order to even further reduce the amount of time required to apply a color gel coat to the finger and/or toe nails.

Although some mechanisms for depositing uncured nail polish formulation onto a user's nail have been described above, other mechanisms may be suitable. Some additional mechanisms are described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/379,913 (“the '913 application”), the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein. Generally, any mechanism that provides for a “bulk” type of deposit of nail polish formulation onto the nail may be suitable because the resin may be cured with a high degree of precision using, for example, computer vision and/or targeted UV light. However, some forms of bulk deposition of nail polish formulation may provide additional benefits. For example, the '913 application describes, inter alia, an applicator in the form of a sponge or other open cell foam applicator that may be impregnated with liquid nail polish formulation and which may be dragged over the fingernail for a bulk deposition of nail polish onto the nail, followed by a precise curing of that nail polish. Relatively, the bulk deposition may be less precise than the following curing of that nail polish.

One potential benefit of bulk nail polish formulation applicators that apply nail polish to the nail via contact (e.g. a stamp type of action as opposed to a spraying type of action) is that the components may relatively easily be made to be disposable and may reduce the overall messiness of a system that employs that type of applicator. For example, the applicators may be pre-packaged as consumable components to be used with a system as described above, and after one or more uses (e.g. a manicure of two hands), can be disposed. These type of applicators may also be relatively cleaner compared to spray-type applicators, for example because there may be a lower likelihood that nail polish formulation is sprayed onto or into parts of the system other than onto the user's nails if the nail polish formulation is being transferred by contact. However, there may also be potential drawbacks of nail polish formulation applicators that apply nail polish to the nail via contact. For example, it may be relatively difficult to apply an even thickness layer of nail polish formulation that contacts all exterior portions of the nail. In particular, referring to FIG. 3, most of the nail plate, including the free edge of the nail plate, may be relatively easy to coat with nail polish via a contact-type applicator. However, the proximal fold and particularly the lateral folds (where the nails have the greatest curvature) may be relatively difficult to coat with nail polish via a contact-type applicator. This may be due, at least in part, to the significant changes in topography at the proximal fold and the lateral folds. In other words, if an applicator impregnated with nail polish formulation is pressed down onto the nail plate, the applicator may easily make contact with most of the nail plate, but the applicator may not easily be able to contact the nail plate at the lateral folds and the proximal fold, which may lead to those areas of the nail being uncoated with nail polish formulation.

FIG. 4 illustrates a highly schematic side view of a nail polish applicator pad 100. Applicator pad 100 is a contact-type applicator that may include the benefits described above (e.g., relatively clean use, and can be made disposable) and that may avoid the drawbacks described above (e.g. difficulty in fully coating the nail plate). Generally, applicator pad 100 may include a working or leading end 120, which may be generally curved to present a curved or convex surface to the user's nail. In some embodiments, the leading end 120 may have a constant radius of curvature (e.g. a circular or cylindrical), although in other embodiments the leading end may have varying radii of curvature (e.g. an elliptical or oval surface). Other shapes, including hemispherical or dome-shapes, may also be suitable for the applicator pad 100. The applicator pad 100 may include a trailing end 140, which may couple to a holding device that holds and/or moves the applicator pad 100 in a desired fashion. Although FIG. 4 illustrates the trailing end 140 of applicator pad 100 as generally rectangular, various other shapes may be suitable. For example, the entire applicator pad 100 may be provided as a cylinder that is rotatable about its center longitudinal axis. If provided as a cylinder, there may not be a separate leading end 120 and trailing end 140 in terms of the structure of the applicator pad 100.

In order for the leading end 120 of applicator pad 100 to be able to apply a nail polish formulation effectively to the entirety of the nail plate, including at the lateral and proximal folds, the applicator pad 100 may be formed of a highly conformable material. For example, if the applicator pad 100 is formed of a material having a hardness in the Shore OO or Shore OOO durometer range, the applicator will likely be soft and conformable enough to conform to the topography in the nail plate at the lateral and/or proximal folds so that any nail polish formulation on the leading end 120 will transfer upon contact to the nail plate. It has been found that forming the applicator pad 100 from a material having a hardness of Shore durometer OO-10 or lower is particularly effective at conforming the fingernail to deposit the nail polish formulation. For example, materials having a hardness of between about Shore OO-40 and Shore OO-70 may be able to effectively conform to the fingernail, although it may be preferable to have the applicator pad 100 formed of a material having a hardness of less than Shore durometer OO-40, less than Shore durometer OO-30, less than Shore durometer OO-20, or as noted above Shore durometer OO-10 or less.

Materials that may be suitable for use in the applicator pad 100 to achieve the desired hardness may include silicones, including room temperature vulcanizing (“RTV”) silicones, soft thermoplastic urethanes or polyurethanes (“TPUs”), soft thermoplastic elastomers (“TPEs”), and soft thermoplastic rubbers. The particular material, such as TPU or TPE, may include high levels of plasticizers to help achieve the desired softness. However, various other materials may have suitable properties for use as the applicator pad 100, including foams of any of the above-described materials, or hydrogels. Preferably, the applicator pad 100 is formed of a single homogenous material. However, the applicator pad 100 may be formed from different portions having different materials. In either case, the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100 preferably has hardness in the Shore OO or Shore OOO durometer range, such as Shore OO-10 or less. It should be noted that hardness values on the Shore durometer scale are described herein. However, the hardness values on the Shore durometer scale described herein should be understood to include equivalent hardness values (or ranges of hardness values) as measured via modalities/scales other than Shore durometer. In some embodiments, the applicator pad 100 may include areas or portions with different hardness values. It should further be understood that the hardness of applicator pad 100 may not be the only factor in determining if the applicator pad 100 may effectively contact the entire surface of the fingernail, including the proximal and lateral folds. For example, if a relatively hard applicator pad 100 is pressed with enough force into the fingernail, it may be able to suitably contact all areas of the fingernail. However, if that same applicator pad 100 is pressed with less force into the fingernail, it may not suitably make contact with the entire fingernail. Thus, it is preferable that the material has a hardness that allows the applicator pad 100 to make contact with the entire fingernail when a force presses the applicator pad 100 onto the fingernail, with the force being comfortable to the user. For example, if the applicator pad 100 is pressed onto the user's fingernail with a force of less than about 30 newtons (N), or less than about 25 N, or less than about 20 N, the force is likely not going to cause discomfort to the user. At these forces, for example at a downward force of about 20 N or less, if the applicator pad 100 has a hardness of Shore durometer OO-10 or less, the applicator pad 100 will be able to contact the entire surface of the user's fingernail without causing discomfort to the user.

In some embodiments, the nail polish formulation may be provided as a high viscosity resin that is liquid, but may be thought of as a semi-solid resin. Additional details of examples of the high viscosity resin are described below.

As is described below, the applicator pad 100 is generally used to press the nail polish formulation onto the fingernail, including into the proximal and lateral folds. The applicator pad 100 may be reusable in the sense that it may deform while being pressed onto the fingernail, and may completely or substantially return to its original shape after being removed from contact with the fingernail. However, in other embodiments, the applicator pad 100 may take the form of a film that elongates, stretches, and/or conforms to the contours of the user's fingernail, such as a paraffin film. For example, such an applicator film may have a nail polish formulation applied to one surface, and that surface may be brought into contact with the user's fingernail, with the film elongating, stretching, and/or conforming to the contours of the user's fingernail in the process. With such an applicator film, the applicator film may be disposable or non-reusable, as the film may not return to its original shape or form after elongating or stretching.

In order for the nail polish formulation to be pressed from the applicator pad 100 onto the user's fingernail, the nail polish formulation may first need to be positioned on the applicator pad 100. There are at least two general methods for positioning the nail polish formulation on the applicator pad 100. For example, the nail polish formulation may be directly applied onto the applicator pad 100. In another embodiment, described in greater detail below, the nail polish formulation may first be positioned on an intermediate member (or multiple intermediate members), and the intermediate member(s) may be positioned on the applicator pad 100.

If the nail polish formulation is to be applied directly to the applicator pad 100, such application may be performed via any suitable method. For example, the nail polish formulation may be sprayed onto the applicator pad 100, or the nail polish formulation may be pressed onto the applicator pad 100 (or the applicator pad 100 may be pressed onto another surface on which the nail polish formulation is positioned). For example, as shown in FIGS. 5A-5B, a film of nail polish formulation 300 may be positioned on a transfer substrate 200 prior in order to directly deposit the film of nail polish formulation 300 onto the applicator pad 100. In the illustrated embodiment, the transfer substrate 200 may be a silicone sheet. The particular material forming transfer substrate 200 is preferably one that the nail polish film will less prefer to stick to compared to the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100. In other words, when the nail polish film is positioned on the transfer substrate 200, and the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100 contacts the nail polish film, the materials forming the transfer substrate 200 and the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100 are preferably chosen so that the nail polish film transfers from the transfer substrate 200 to the applicator pad 100. One property that may affect how much the nail polish film “likes” or sticks to the particular material may be the surface roughness of the material. Another property that may affect how much the nail polish film “likes” or sticks to the particular material is the surface chemistry of the material.

Once the nail polish formulation 300 is positioned on the transfer substrate 200, the film of nail polish formulation 300 may be transferred to the applicator pad 100. For example, FIG. 6A illustrates the applicator pad 100 being positioned near the film of nail polish formulation 300 on transfer substrate 200 at an angle. In other words, the apex of the leading end 120 may be positioned near a side wall of the film of nail polish formulation 300, with a an axis passing through the applicator pad 100 oriented at an oblique angle relative to the film of nail polish formulation 300. The applicator pad 100 may be rotated or rolled in the direction D2 shown in FIG. 6A, so that the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100 rolls over the film of nail polish 300 while contacting the film of nail polish. As noted above, the film of nail polish 300 preferably sticks to the material of applicator pad 100 instead of transfer substrate 200. As a result, as the leading end 120 of applicator pad 100 contacts and rolls over the film of nail polish 300, the film of nail polish 300 will stick to the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100 while pulling off of the transfer substrate 200. FIG. 6B illustrates the film of nail polish formulation 300 after having been transferred from the transfer substrate 200 to the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100. In some embodiments, the thickness of the nail polish formulation 300, when it is positioned on the applicator pad 100, is between about 50 μm and about 400 μm or between about 50 μm and about 250 μm, including for example about 100 μm, about 150 μm, about 200 μm, about 250 μm, about 300 μm, and about 350 μm. Although rolling the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100 along or over the nail polish formulation 300 is one way to transfer the nail polish formulation 300 from the transfer substrate 200 to the applicator pad 100, other options may be suitable. For example, the applicator pad 100 may be pressed directly down onto the top of the film of nail polish formulation 300 (e.g. in a direction normal to the film of nail polish formulation 300). Another option, for example if the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100 is dome-shaped or hemispherical, the applicator pad 100 may be pressed down onto the film of nail polish formulation 300 such that the applicator pad 100 progressively engages the film of nail polish formulation 300. In other words, the tip of the applicator pad 100 may first contact a generally centered portion of the nail polish formulation 300, and as the applicator pad 100 is pressed further and the leading end 120 deforms, the portions of applicator pad 100 spaced from the tip may progressively contact the film of nail polish formulation 300. In any of these options, it is desirable that the applicator pad 100 evenly picks up the nail polish formulation 300, so that a substantially continuous layer of nail polish formulation 300 of substantially even thickness is positioned on the applicator pad 100 when the transfer is complete. However, as noted briefly above and described in greater detail below, it may be preferable to leave the nail polish formulation 300 on an intermediate transfer film, and attach the intermediate transfer film directly to the applicator pad 100 so that the film of nail polish formulation 300 does not directly contact the applicator pad 100.

After the film of nail polish formulation 300 is transferred to the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100, the applicator pad 100 may be used to transfer the film of nail polish formulation 300 from the applicator pad 100 onto a user's fingernail. FIG. 7A illustrates a highly schematic view of the applicator pad 100, including the film of nail polish 300 positioned thereon, in a position adjacent a fingernail 410 of a user's finger 400. The applicator pad 100 may be held by a system in any desired fashion, including at trailing end 140. If the applicator pad 100 is cylindrical, it may be held via a rod extending through a longitudinal center of the applicator pad 100. Preferably, regardless of how applicator pad 100 is coupled to a system, the system provides for rolling or rotational motion similar to that described in connection with FIG. 6A. Just prior to making contact with the fingernail 410 of the user's finger 400, the applicator pad 100 is preferably oriented at an oblique angle relative to a transverse plane through the user's finger 400, as shown in FIG. 7A. The applicator pad 100 may be moved through a rotational or rolling motion in direction D3 similar or identical to the rotational or rolling motion in direction D2 described in connection with FIG. 6A. As the applicator pad 100 contacts the user's fingernail 410 and moves through the rotational or rolling motion in direction D3, the portions of the film of nail polish formulation 300 that are pressed onto the user's fingernail 410 transfer from the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100 to the user's fingernail 410. FIG. 7B illustrates the applicator pad 100 having moved through about half of the rotational or rolling motion in direction D3 and having applied about half of the film of nail polish formulation 300 to the user's fingernail 410. FIG. 7C illustrates the applicator pad 100 having moved through substantially all of the rotational or rolling motion in direction D3 and having applied most or all of the nail polish formulation 300 to the user's fingernail 410. Although the motion of applicator pad 100 is described as a rolling or rotating motion, as with the transfer of the nail polish formulation film 300 to the applicator pad 100, other motions may be suitable to transfer the nail polish formulation film 300 from the applicator pad 100 to the fingernail. For example, the applicator pad 100 may be pressed directly down onto the fingernail (e.g. in a direction substantially normal to the fingernail), or progressive engagement may be used, similar to the progressive engagement described above. These alternate motions for depositing a coat of nail polish onto the fingernail may be used for any other embodiment described herein in place of the rolling motion.

As noted above, the material used to form applicator pad 100 is preferably chosen so that the nail polish formulation 300 prefers to stick to the applicator pad 100 over the transfer substrate 200. Similarly, the material used to form applicator pad 100 is preferably chosen so that the nail polish formulation 300 prefers to stick to the fingernail 410 of the user over the applicator pad 100. In other words, as the applicator pad 100 presses onto the user's fingernail 410, the nail polish formulation 300 prefers to transfer from the applicator pad 100 to the user's fingernail 410, instead of merely remaining on the applicator pad 100 upon contact with the fingernail 410.

Further, as described above, the applicator pad 100 may be formed of an extremely conformable material, the material preferably having a hardness in the Shore OO or Shore OOO durometer ranges. At least partially as a result of the extreme conformability of the applicator pad 100, the applicator pad 100 is able to easily conform to the topography of the user's fingernail 410, including the relatively large curvature at the lateral folds of the fingernail. As a result, the applicator pad 100 is easily able to press nail polish formulation 300 into all portions of the user's nail plate. Without this conformability, it may be very difficult to transfer nail polish from an applicator to all portions of the nail plate with even and complete transfer, particularly at the lateral folds.

Although the nail polish formulation 300 is described in greater detail below, it should be understood that the nail polish formulation 300 may have a high enough viscosity to remain in a semi-solid form, but also be easily able to dissociate from itself. In other words, any portion of the film of nail polish formulation 300 that is on positioned on the applicator pad 100, but that is not pressed into contact with the fingernail 410, may remain on the applicator pad 100. On the other hand, all or substantially all portions of the nail polish formulation 300 that are pressed from the applicator pad 100 onto the user's fingernail 410 will transfer from the applicator pad 100 to the user's fingernail 410.

In an exemplary manicure, a user may be provided with an applicator pad 100 with the film or nail polish formulation 300 already applied to the leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100. However, in other embodiments described in greater detail below, the applicator pad 100 may be provided with the system and the user may be provided with one or more strips or pieces of nail polish formulation 300.

If the user is provided with the applicator pad 100 that already has the nail polish formulation 300 deposited on the applicator pad 100, the user may couple the applicator pad 100 to a receiving or holding component within a device similar to housing 10 described in connection with FIG. 2. FIG. 8A illustrates one example of a system that may be used to receive applicator pad 100, for example as part of a system similar to that described in connection with housing 10. In FIG. 8A, a cutaway view of the user's finger 400 is shown resting on a finger positioning and/or support device, with the user's fingernail 410 facing upwards. In this particular embodiment, the applicator pad 100 is generally cylindrical and is attached to a rod or similar device that extends through a center of the applicator pad 100. The rod may be attached to an applicator support that moves linearly in a plane parallel to a transverse plane through the user's finger 400. For example, the applicator support may be coupled to a motor to provide the desired movement. The rod may be rotatable relative to the applicator support and/or the applicator pad 100 may be rotatable relative to the rod so that, as the applicator support moves linearly and drags the applicator pad 100 across the user's fingernail 410, the applicator pad 100 rotates or rolls to provide the desired motion described above. The rotation of the applicator pad 100 may be passive (e.g. as a result of contact with the fingernail 410) or active (e.g. as a result of a motor turning a rod supporting the applicator pad 100).

Still referring to FIG. 8A, the user may open a package containing the applicator pad 100 with the film of nail polish formulation 300 already applied thereto. The user may insert the applicator 100 over the rod or similar receiving device. The user may place the desired finger 400 within the system, for example on a finger support (not separately labeled in FIG. 8A). The finger support may be positioned below a camera or optical sensor 20 similar to that described above. In the illustrated embodiment, a single component is shown as including both the optical sensor 20 and UV source 50, although it should be understood that these devices may be provided in different components. The optical sensor 20 may be used as described above to determine the boundaries of the user's fingernail 410. Then, the rod holding the applicator 100 may be translated linearly so that the applicator pad 100 contacts the users fingernail 410, the applicator pad 100 rolling over the fingernail 410 as contact is made and the rod continues translating the applicator pad 100 linearly. This progression is shown between FIGS. 8A-C. As described above, as the applicator pad 100 rolls over the fingernail 410 as shown in the progression of FIGS. 8A-C, the portions of the film of nail polish 300 that contact the fingernail 410 are deposited onto the fingernail 410. FIG. 8C illustrates the applicator pad 100 having rolled over most or all of the fingernail 410, the applicator pad 100 having completely covered the user's fingernail 410 with nail polish formulation 300.

After the user's fingernail 410 has been completely covered with the nail polish formulation 300, the applicator support may continue moving linearly to move the applicator pad 100 to the side, as shown in FIG. 8D, so that the applicator pad 100 is out of the way for the curing step(s). Preferably, at this point, the user's finger 400 and fingernail 410 has not changed positions significantly so that the detected boundaries of the user's fingernail 410 are still accurate. However, as noted above, the optical sensor 20 may conduct the edge detection on a periodic or continuing basis in order to account for any movement of the user's finger 400 or fingernail 410. With the fingernail 410 coated with the nail polish formulation 300 and the boundaries of the fingernail having been detected, the UV source 50 may selectively cure the portions of the nail polish formulation 300 within the boundaries of the fingernail 410. In FIG. 8E, the curing energy 51 from the UV source 50 is represented by a triangular beam, but it should be understood this is for purposes of illustration only. The UV source 50 may function as described above, and may be an energy source outside the UV spectrum, as long as the energy source is configured to cure the nail polish formulation 300.

The first portion of the curing step is also shown in FIG. 9A, where the UV source 50 is illustrated as projecting one or more beams of UV energy 51 onto the portions of the fingernail 410 covered by nail polish formulation 300, but not on any nail polish formulation 300 positioned outside the boundary of the fingernail 410. FIG. 9B illustrates the curing step complete, with the nail polish formulation on the fingernail 410 being shown as cured nail polish formulation 310, with the remaining nail polish formulation being shown as uncured nail polish formulation 320. After the curing step is complete, the uncured nail polish formulation 320 may be removed from the fingernail 410. For example, the user may manually remove the uncured nail polish formulation 320 may manually wiping the fingernail 410 with an alcohol (e.g. isopropyl alcohol) or acetone wipe (although other wipes may be suitable, including wipes without any solvent, or wipes with other suitable solvents). In other embodiments, a second applicator pad impregnated with alcohol, acetone, or another wiping solvent may be dragged over the fingernail 410 to automatically wipe away the uncured nail polish 320. In still other embodiments, if additional coats of nail polish formulation are to be applied to the fingernail 410, those additional coats may be applied prior to wiping off any uncured nail polish, with the wiping occurring following the final stage of curing. As shown in FIG. 9C, after the uncured nail polish formulation 320 is wiped away, the remaining cured nail polish formulation 310 completely covers the fingernail 410 and does not extend beyond the boundaries of the fingernail 410.

Although the curing energy 51 is shown in FIG. 9A as being transmitted from the energy source 50 onto the nail polish formulation 300 without any intervening material, in other embodiments, the curing energy 51 may pass through the applicator pad 100, for example while the applicator pad 100 is pressing the nail polish formulation 300 onto the fingernail 400. For example, if the applicator pad 100 is optically clear, or otherwise permits transmission of the curing energy 51 through the applicator pad 100, applicator pad 100 may be positioned between the energy source 50 and the fingernail 410 during curing. In such embodiments, it may be preferable for the curing to occur while the applicator pad 100 is pressing the nail polish formulation 300 onto the fingernail 410, so that the curing energy 51 can pass directly from the applicator pad 100 to the nail polish formulation 300 without having to travel through air. This may assist in the curing as there may be little or no oxygen available to interact with the top layer of the nail polish formulation 300, as oxygen may tend to inhibit full curing. Further, if curing energy 51 passes through air between the point where it exits the energy source 50 and where it enters the applicator pad 100, the curing energy 51 may move in undesirable directions due to a different index of refraction between air and the material of the applicator pad 100. Thus, if curing energy 51 is intended to pass through the applicator pad 100, it may be desirable for there to be direct contact between the energy source 50 and the applicator pad 100. However, if the applicator pad 100 is highly conformable, this may not be an entirely practical option. Thus, it may be desirable to provide an optically clear backing on the top (or trailing end 140) of the applicator pad 100 that is harder than the applicator pad 100 to provide additional structural integrity for contact between the energy source 50 and the applicator pad 100. Preferably, if such an optically clear backing is used, it has an index of refraction that is similar or the same as the material forming the applicator pad 100, to help ensure the curing energy 51 travels in the intended direction as it passes from the optically clear backing into the applicator pad 100. For example, if the applicator pad 100 is formed of silicone, the optically clear backing may be formed of acrylic. The method of transmitting curing energy 51 through the applicator pad 100 to cure the nail polish formulation 300 may be used for any embodiment described herein, unless explicitly noted otherwise.

It should be understood that, although it may be desirable for the nail polish formulation 300 to be applied to the user's fingernail 410 in a precise manner in which the nail polish formulation perfectly covers the entire fingernail 410 without being applied beyond the boundary of the fingernail 410 (e.g. skin on the user's finger), a bulk deposit mechanism will generally not allow this. In other words, because the curing process is extremely precise, the bulk deposit of nail polish (which may be practically easier than a precise deposit of nail polish) does not significantly negatively affect the end result of the manicure. It may be particularly difficult to avoid depositing nail polish formulation 300 onto a user's skin outside the boundaries of the fingernail 410 if users are being supplied with prepackaged containers of films of nail polish formulation 300 (with or without being pre-positioned on applicator pad 100). In other words, the sizes and shapes of a user's own fingernails may vary from finger to finger and from hand to hand, and the sizes and shapes of fingernails among the population are highly variable. Thus, in order for a prepackaged container of films of nail polish formulation 300 to be suitable to cover the entire fingernail 410 of many, most, or all users, the nail polish formulation 300 may need to be somewhat oversized compared to the average user's fingernail 410. And although wiping away the uncured nail polish formulation 320 after curing is complete is an acceptable strategy to cope with this extra nail polish formulation deposition, the high viscosity of the nail polish formulation 300 may create at least some difficulty in the removal step. In other words, the uncured nail polish formulation 320 may be very tacky or “gooey” on the skin, which may increase the difficulty of easily wiping away that uncured nail polish formulation 320 from the skin. Thus, it may be preferable to minimize the area and/or volume of uncured nail polish formulation 320 that remains on the user's skin after the curing process is complete. One way to help mitigate this issue is by “pre-curing” an area or volume of the nail polish formulation 300 while it is still positioned on applicator pad 100, prior to being deposited on the user's skin. As should be clear, it is typically undesirable to “pre-cure” the nail polish formulation 300 that will be deposited onto the user's fingernail 410. In other words, any “pre-curing” of the nail polish formulation 300 should be limited to nail polish formulation that would be expected to be deposited on the user's skin outside the boundary of the fingernail 410. As used herein, the term “pre-curing” refers to curing an area and/or volume of nail polish formulation while it is still on an applicator such as applicator pad 100 (or prior to being positioned on the applicator) prior to the step of depositing the nail polish formulation onto the user's fingernail.

FIG. 10A is a highly schematic illustration of a pre-curing step. In the particular illustrated embodiment, a film of nail polish 300 has already been applied to the leading end 120 of applicator pad 100. An energy source, which may be a UV energy source 50′, may cure portions of the film of nail polish formulation 300 with a curing energy 51′, such as UV light, prior to the nail polish formulation 300 being deposited on the user's fingernail 410. UV source 50′ may be the same as UV source 50′, although in such a case, the applicator pad 100 may need to be rotated to a position facing the UV source prior to the pre-curing step. In other embodiments, UV source 50′ may be separate from UV source 50, although the structure and function may be otherwise similar. Preferably, prior to the pre-curing shown in FIG. 10A, the user inserts his or her finger 400 and fingernail 410 into the system, including on the finger support, so that the optical sensor 20 may detect the outline and/or boundaries of the user's fingernail 410. That information may be used to determine which portions of the film of nail polish formulation 300 are likely to be transferred to the user's fingernail 410, and which portions of the film of nail polish formulation 300 are likely to be transferred onto the user's skin outside the boundaries of the user's fingernail 410 (which may be referred to as the excess nail polish area). The UV source 50′ may then direct UV energy 51′ only to the excess nail polish area. However, it may be desirable to incorporate a buffer so that less than the entire excess nail polish area is pre-cured, to help ensure that all of the nail polish formulation 300 deposited onto the fingernail 410 is uncured at the time of deposition. If the pre-curing is being performed while the film of nail polish formulation 300 is positioned on a curved leading end 120 of the applicator pad 100, the curvature of the film of nail polish formulation 300 may be taken into account when determining which areas of the nail polish formulation 300 to pre-cure. And although the pre-curing step is shown as being completed while the nail polish formulation 300 is already deposited on the applicator pad 100, in other embodiments, the film of nail polish formulation 300 may be pre-cured prior to the film being transferred onto the applicator pad 100. Still further, in embodiments where the film of nail polish formulation 300 is positioned on an intermediate transfer film while it is positioned on the applicator pad 100 (described in greater detail below), the pre-curing may take place prior to positioning the transfer film supporting the nail polish formulation onto the applicator pad 100. This pre-curing energy may be directed through the intermediate transfer film (as long as the transfer film is optically clear such that the pre-curing energy may pass through the film), or directed onto the film of nail polish formulation 100 without passing through the intermediate transfer film. In addition, if the applicator pad 100 is optically clear, the pre-curing may be performed through the applicator pad 100 while the nail polish is directly or indirectly (e.g. via an intermediate transfer film) positioned on the applicator pad 100.

After the pre-curing step is performed, the film of nail polish formulation 300 may be applied to the user's fingernail 410 in substantially the same manner as described in connection with FIGS. 7A-C (including the alternate options besides the rolling motion). For example, FIG. 10B illustrates the applicator pad 100 being brought into proximity of the user's fingernail 410, with the uncured nail polish formulation 320 bounded by areas of pre-cured nail polish formulation 330. As the applicator pad 100 is rolled in direction D3, shown in FIGS. 10C-D, the pre-cured nail polish formulation 330 may remain on the applicator pad 100 while the uncured nail polish formulation 320 is deposited onto the user's fingernail 410. The pre-cured nail polish formulation 330 may remain on the applicator pad 100 due to that portion of the applicator pad 100 never making contact with the user's finger 400 or fingernail 410. The pre-cured nail polish formulation 330 may also remain on the applicator pad 100 due to the pre-curing, which may reduce the likelihood that the pre-cured nail polish formulation 330 will transfer from the applicator pad 100 to the user's finger 400 or fingernail 410, even when contact is made. For example, the pre-cured nail polish formulation 330 may be less “sticky” or “tacky,” and as a result may be less likely to transfer to the finger 400 upon contact. And the pre-cured nail polish formulation 330 need not be fully cured. For example, the application of energy during the pre-curing step may be performed for a time that is less than what is expected for curing the nail polish formulation 300 positioned on the fingernail 410. Even with a “partial” pre-curing step, the properties of the pre-cured nail polish formulation 330 may change enough to reduce the likelihood that it will transfer upon contact with the user's finger. As a result, as shown in FIG. 10D, a smaller amount (or no amount) of uncured nail polish formulation 320 may be deposited from the applicator pad 100 to the user's finger 400 outside the boundaries of the fingernail 410 (e.g. the skin of the finger). Thus, after the uncured nail polish formulation 320 on the fingernail 410 is cured, for example similar to the method described in connection with FIGS. 8E and 9A, there may be little or no uncured nail polish formulation 320 remaining on the user's skin that needs to be wiped away, for example with an alcohol or acetone wipe. This pre-curing process may thus increase overall precision of the nail polish deposition, while making any clean-up of the user's finger 400 faster and/or easier. In some examples, just prior to the uncured nail polish formulation 320 being transferred to the user's fingernail, a live feed or static picture of the user's fingernail may be provided, for example via a display device, along with a detected outline of the user's fingernail being overlaid onto the live feed or static picture. The user may review the image to confirm that the user's fingernail is indeed positioned within the detected outline of the user's fingernail. If the user determines that the illustrated detected outline or boundary of the user's fingernail does not correctly overlie the user's fingernail, the user may quickly reposition his or her fingernail to an area within the illustrated detected outline or boundary of the user's fingernail prior to the uncured nail polish being transferred to the user's fingernail.

The above-described embodiments are described as being used with a pre-packaged nail polish applicator pad 100 with the nail polish formulation 300 already having been applied to the applicator pad 100. In such an embodiment, the user may be provided with a plurality of the applicator pads 100 as pre-packaged component(s), for example to use in a single manicure. For example, if the manicure involves applying a base coat, a color coat, and a top coat to ten fingernails, the user may be provided with thirty applicator pads 100, ten having the base coat already applied, ten having the color coat already applied, and ten having the top coat already applied. In other examples, the user may be provided with additional pre-packaged applicators for each manicure to allow for a fix or a correction for one or more fingernails if the manicure of particular nails does achieve the desired result. For example, for each coat, the user may be provided with twelve applicator pads 100 to allow for two “fixes” per coat. In still other embodiments, the user need not be provided with an applicator pad 100 for each fingernail. For example, the applicator pad 100 may be sized so that a single applicator pad 100 may apply nail polish formulation 300 to a plurality of fingernails. For example, a single applicator pad 100 may be pre-loaded with nail polish formulation 300 with the ability to cover two fingernails, five fingernails, ten fingernails, etc. In still further embodiments, described in greater detail below, the system may include a permanent or semi-permanent applicator pad 100 installed on the system, and the user may be provided with one or more pre-packaged films of nail polish formulation 300, with the films being applied to the applicator pad just prior to deposition onto the user's fingernail.

As noted above, the nail polish formulation 300 preferably has a very high viscosity resin, which may help the nail polish formulation 300 perform in the above-described manner. In one example, the nail polish formulation 300 preferably has a viscosity of at least 200,000 centipoise (cP), and up to 2,000,000 cP or greater at room temperature (e.g. between about 20° C. and about 25° C., including 21° C., 22° C., 23° C., or 24° C.) and at a shear rate of about 10 s⁻¹. The applicator pad 100 may be highly conformable, as described above. As the applicator pad 100 applies force to the nail polish formulation 300, it is substantially likely that forces may be unevenly applied from the applicator pad 100 to the resin 300 as the resin 300 is pressed on the fingernail 410. If the nail polish formulation 300 had a viscosity lower than 200,000 cP, the likelihood of obtaining an even coating of the nail polish formulation 300 on the fingernail 410 is reduced. With a high viscosity nail polish formulation 300, including viscosities of at least 200,000 cP, and up to 2,000,000 cP and greater, the fluid has more limited movement under force, which allows for the nail polish formulation 300 to be evenly and/or uniformly applied to the fingernail 410, even if uneven forces are applied by the applicator pad 100. Forming the nail polish formulation 300 as a high viscosity resin may also have additional benefits. Nail polish formulation having viscosities of at least 200,000 cP and up to at least 2,000,000 cP are not known to have been previously used in nail polish formulation, but it has been found that such nail polish formulation may provide both longevity and easier removal than prior lower viscosity nail polish formulation. Still further, nail polish formulation with the above-mentioned viscosity may be more non-sensitizing than otherwise similar but lower viscosity nail polish formulation. In other words, high viscosity nail polish formulation may be less likely to irritate a user's skin and may be safer compared to lower viscosity, but otherwise similarly formulated, nail polish formulation. Even further, both chemical stability, as well as particle stability, of high viscosity resins may be greater than for otherwise similarly formulated lower viscosity resins. This may enhance, for example, the shelf-life of such high viscosity nail polish formulation. Another benefit of very high viscosity nail polish formulation is that oxygen diffusion near the surface of the nail polish formulation may be lower than what would be found in more typical lacquer nail polish formulation. The relatively low oxygen diffusion may, at least in part, result in a very good glossiness in the nail polish formulation when applied to the fingernail. Other more typical lacquers may also achieve good gloss, but require various additives to achieve such glossiness, whereas a very high viscosity nail polish polymer resin may achieve very desirable gloss without (or with only minimal) additives.

Although the high-viscosity nail polish formulation described herein may be a Newtonian fluid, it may instead be formed as a non-Newtonian fluid. For example, the nail polish formulation may be formed as a shear thinning or shear thickening fluid (including, for example, by the addition of rheology modifiers to obtain shear thinning or shear thickening properties). Generally, a fluid is shear thickening if the viscosity (or apparent viscosity) increases as the shear rate increases, whereas a fluid is shear thinning if the viscosity (or apparent viscosity) decreases as the shear rate increases. The nail polish formulation may also be formed as a yield stress fluid. Generally, a yield stress fluid is able to flow only when they are subjected to a stress above some pre-determined value. When yield stress fluids are subjected to a stress below that pre-determined value, they tend to act more like a solid. Shear thinning fluids may be particularly desirable for the methods described herein as they may remain in a semi-solid type of state during storage and before application to the fingernail, but while they are being pressed onto the fingernail 410 by applicator pad 100, the apparent viscosity of the nail polish formulation 300 may reduce, allowing the nail polish formulation to more easily “flow” into the hard-to-reach areas of the fingernail 410, including the proximal and lateral folds.

A high viscosity nail polish formulation 300 according to the present disclosure may include one or more components, including a diacrylate-based resin or a dimethacrylate-based resin, a film-forming homopolymer, a photoinitiator, a reactive diluent, a rheology modifier, a pigment and/or other additives.

Suitable diacrylate-based resins include one or more of aliphatic urethane diacrylates, cycloaliphatic urethane diacrylates, polyalkylene glycol diacrylates, butane-1,4-diol diacrylate, butane-1,6-diol diacrylate, 1,6-hexane diol diacrylate, 2-((acryloyloxy)methyl)-2-ethylpropane-1,3-diyl diacrylate, ((2,2-dimethylpropane-1,3-diyl)bis(oxy))bis(propane-2,1-diyl)diacrylate, and bisphenol A epoxy diacrylate. Examples of suitable polyalkylene glycol diacrylates include ethylene glycol diacrylate, diethylene glycol diacrylate, triethylene glycol diacrylate, polyethylene glycol diacrylate, polypropylene glycol diacrylate, dipropylene glycol diacrylate, and tripropylene glycol diacrylate. Suitable dimethacrylate-based resins include one or more of aliphatic urethane dimethacrylates, cycloaliphatic urethane dimethacrylates, bisphenol A-glycidyl methacrylate, (“BIS-GMA”), 3-glycerol dimethacrylate/succinate adduct, dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate, polyethylene glycol dimethacrylate, neopentylglycol dimethacrylate, pyromellitic dianhydride dimethacrylate, pyromellitic dianhydride glyceryl dimethacrylate, and promellitic dimethacrylate, such as described in U.S. Ser. Nos. 13/042,436, 15/307,089, 15/501,539, 15/702,434, U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,901,199 and 10,744,348 B2, all of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. If a diacrylate-based resin is used, one example may include a blend of high viscosity urethane diacrylate resins, for example, Sartomer CN 963 diacrylate and Esstech PL-7210 urethane diacrylate blended together or provided separately. The high viscosity diacrylate-based or dimethacrylate-based resin may provide (or help provide) many of the desirable qualities described above, including the ability to be evenly applied to the fingernail 410 by applicator pad 100.

The film-forming homopolymer may assist in forming the nail polish formulation 300 into a film, and may help enhance the ease with which the nail polish formulation 300 may be removed from the user's fingernail 410 when the user desires to remove the nail polish. Suitable film-forming additives include one or more of cellulose film-forming derivatives (e.g., nitrocellulose, ethyl cellulose, cellulose esters such as cellulose acetate, cellulose acetate butyrate, cellulose acetate propionate and mixtures thereof), vinyl and acrylic polymers (e.g., poly(acrylic acid) and poly(vinyl butyryl), silicon resins (e.g., trimethyl silicate and polymethylsilsesquioxene) ether-based resins (e.g., polyvinyl stearyl ether) and the condensation of formaldehyde with arylsulphonomide. The film-forming additive may be used individually or may be in the form of co-film. In one example, the film-forming homopolymer is cellulose acetate butyrate having a molecular weight greater than 10K.

The reactive diluent may reduce the viscosity of the formulation, for example in order to help achieve the desired final viscosity, and may also have an influence on the adhesion of the formulation to the substrate (e.g. the nail or an underlying layer of nail polish), as well as influencing the cross-linking of the resin. Although various reactive diluents are known in the art, some suitable examples may include hydroxyethyl methacrylate (“HEMA”), hydroxypropyl methacrylate (“HPMA”), and trimethyl propyl trimethacrylate (“TMPTMA”). The rheology modifier may affect how the formulation flows, for example by providing shear thickening, shear thinning, or yield stress properties as described above.

Although various rheology modifiers are known in the art, one suitable example may be fumed silicas, which may be chemically modified, for example by decorating the surface of the particles with specific chemicals that change the behavior of the underlying particle. Other suitable examples may include bentonite clay and hectorite.

The photoinitiator may help to initiate the polymerization reaction upon application of the curing energy, which may be UV energy (although, in other embodiments, may be other types of energy, including electromagnetic energy outside the UV spectrum). Suitable photoinitiators include: 2, 4, 6, trimethylbenzoyldiphenylphosphine oxide, methyl phenyl glyoxylate, 1-hydroxy-cyclohexyl-phenyl-ketone and ethyl (2, 4, 6-trimethylbenzoyl)phenylphosphinate. The concentration of the photoinitiator may be dependent, at least in part, on the wavelength at which the photoinitiator is activated, and on the intensity of the electromagnetic that will be applied. And while a single type of photoinitiator may be suitable, in some embodiments, two photoinitiators with different initiation wavelengths may be provided in a single formulation.

A wide variety of pigments may be used. The pigment helps to provide the desired color, if any color is to be provided. It should be understood that a pigment may be provided in a base coat or even a topcoat. For example, topcoats may have a tendency to yellow, and adding a blue pigment to the top coat may help diminish this effect. Any suitable pigment, for example Red 6, may be used as the pigment if a pigment is included.

Other suitable additives include wetting agents, plasticizers (e.g., citrates and phthalates) defoamers (e.g., polysiloxane emulsions), levelling agents, and dispersing agents, optical brighteners, oils, waxes, fragrances, preservatives, plasticizers and the like, the selection of which will be within the skill of one in the art of nail polish formulation and are as described, for example in U.S. Ser. Nos. 13/042,436, 15/307,089, 15/501,539, 15/702,434, U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,901,199 and 10,744,348 B2, all of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.

Although all or some of the above-mentioned formulation components may be included in the nail polish formulation 300 in any suitable combination, some guidelines may be helpful. For example, in one particular formulation of nail polish formulation 300, the mass fraction of high viscosity dimethacrylate (or the high viscosity diacrylate) in the nail polish formulation 300 may be between about 50% and about 95%, including between about 80% and about 90%, including about 85%. The mass fraction of the film-forming homopolymer included in the nail polish formulation 300 may be between about 0% and about 15%, including about 5% and about 10%. The mass fraction of the photoinitiator included in the nail polish formulation 300 may be between about 0% and about 15%, including about 1%, about 3%, about 5%, about 7%, about 9%, about 11%, and about 13% The mass fraction of the pigment in the nail polish formulation 300, if included, may be between about 0% and about 15%, including about 1%, about 3%, about 5%, about 7%, about 9%, about 11%, and about 13%. The reactive diluent and/or rheology modifier may be added to the formulation as needed. It should be understood that each range of mass percent of each component described above includes any value between the outer bounds of the particular range provided. In other words, if the high viscosity dimethacrylate may be between about 75% and about 95% of the formulation, this should be understood to include 76%, 77%, 78%, etc.

The nail polish formulation 300 described above may be suitable for use as a color coat, a base coat, and/or a top coat, although the formulation may vary somewhat depending on how the nail polish formulation 300 is used. For example, pigments may be added if the nail polish formulation is to be used as a color coat, and pigments may be omitted if the nail polish formulation 300 is to be used as a top coat. However, for the embodiment described above, regardless of the use of the nail polish formulation 300, the resin should be formulated to be high viscosity and selectively curable, for example by electromagnetic energy such as UV light.

Although the above-described formulation(s) may be suitable for base coats, color coats, and/or topcoats (with or without modification specific to each coat), there may be special considerations regarding the base coat. For example, in a typical UV-curable liquid base coat that has low viscosity compared to the above-described formulation, the UV curing of the base coat may cause the base coat become difficult to remove, and may be damaging to the user's fingernail. The typical lacquer base coat is swellable in acetone for removal, and provides good adhesion to the underlying nail plate, so that additional layers may be provided on top of the base coat. Other types of nail decoration products avoid this issue entirely, but other problems may arise with those options. For example, some vinyl sticker nail products include a thin layer of vinyl and a pressure-sensitive adhesive (“PSA”) bottom layer. Although these products may look like a traditional lacquer gel manicure, the vinyl sticker nail products are typically both difficult and time-consuming to skillfully apply. In addition, the vinyl sticker nail products typically need to be chosen for the correct size and then filed down. Further, these types of vinyl stickers may show wear quickly relative to gel manicures, may allow dirt to get under the vinyl and stick to the PSA layer, and may still require users to apply a top coat manually. One of the advantages of the vinyl stickers is that they are easier to remove compared to lacquer base coats.

As described above, the formulations described herein are preferably very high viscosity resins. High viscosity nail polish formulation may not be ideal for use as a base coat. For example, the low viscosity of traditional lacquer base coats may allow the base coat to easily flow into all of the “nooks and crannies” of the nail, ensuring good coverage and adhesion of the base coat to the nail plate. This is why it may be preferable for the high viscosity nail polish formulation to have shear thinning properties. In addition, the base coat typically is provided with solvents that evaporate as the base coat dries on the nail plate. This evaporation may result in reduced cross-link density of the resin, which may help for the overlying color coat, when applied, to make good contact with the base coat. In addition, this reduced cross-link density may assist with later removal of the nail polish, as solvents may be able to more easily penetrate the base coat to assist with removing the base coat. Because of these factors, forming a base coat from a very high viscosity resin may not be optimal in all cases.

As should be understood from this disclosure, high viscosity nail polish formulation are preferable for use in the systems described herein. However, as noted directly above, a high viscosity UV-curable nail polish formulation may not be optimal for use in a base coat. One option to overcome the tension between high viscosity and effective use as a base coat is to use a PSA layer as a base coat, with the high viscosity UV curable nail polish formulation described above as the color coat(s) and/or top coat. PSAs are typically inherently high viscosity polymers, such as styrene-acrylate copolymers. The PSA base coats described herein preferably are provided in a roll or in sheets, and need not be UV cured (or cured by other electromagnetic energy), as the PSAs are activated by the application of pressure, with the application of pressure pressing the PSA into the “nooks and crannies” of the nail plate. However, PSA base coats may be provided as UV-curable base coats, and there may be benefits of using a PSA base coat that is curable by UV energy (or other suitable energy). Preferably, the PSAs are soluble/swellable in a solvent, such as acetone (and/or other solvents, such as isopropyl alcohol), although not all PSAs are soluble/swellable. Thus, during removal of a manicure that includes a PSA film base coat, the PSA film may be able to be wiped away in a similar or the same manner as uncured nail polish formulation described above. As will be described in greater detail below, the PSA base coat may be applied as a film onto the first coat of high viscosity nail polish formulation (e.g. the color coat), with both the PSA base coat and the first coat of high viscosity nail polish formulation being applied to the user's fingernail simultaneously. In other embodiments, the PSA base coat may be applied as a film in a first step, with the layer(s) of high viscosity nail polish formulation being applied in one or more following steps. In still further embodiments, the PSA may be provided as a liquid, including a UV-curable liquid or a solvent-based liquid, that may be used as a base coat. PSA base coats, if used as a base coat for the high viscosity nail polish formulation described herein, may be easily removed by the user at home between manicures, and may provide adhesion that is superior to a base coat formed of high viscosity nail polish formulation.

Two examples of the use of a PSA base coat with the system(s) described herein are described in connection with FIGS. 11A-C and 12A-C. However, it should be understood that, if a PSA base coat is used, it may be applied manually by the user as an initial step, instead of being applied using the systems described herein.

Referring now to FIGS. 11A-C, a film of PSA 500, which may be used as the base coat, is positioned on the leading end 120 of applicator pad 100. As with the nail polish formulation 300, the applicator pad 100 may be provided to the user with the PSA film 500 already positioned thereon, or the PSA film 500 may be provided to the user separately, with the applicator pad 100 provided as part of the system. The process depositing the PSA film 500 onto the user's fingernail 410 is substantially the same as described above in connection with the deposition of nail polish formulation 300 in FIGS. 7A-C, and thus need not be described in detail again here. However, it should be noted that, as the highly conformable applicator pad 100 presses against the fingernail 410, it is able to press the PSA film 500 into the fingernail 410, including in any nooks and crannies of the fingernail 410, with the pressure from the applicator pad 100 activating the PSA film 500 to adhere to the fingernail 410. And unlike the nail polish formulation 300, the PSA film 500 does not need to be cured by electromagnetic energy after the deposition. Rather, after the PSA film 500 is applied to the fingernail 410, the process may be repeated to deposit a nail polish formulation 300 as a color coat on top of the base coat PSA film 500, and after curing the color coat, another nail polish formulation 300 may be deposited as a top coat on top of the color coat, with the top coat being cured after deposition. However, as noted above, UV-curable PSA base coats may be used. If a UV-curable PSA base coat is used, it may be cured in substantially the same fashion as described above for the UV-curable base coat of high viscosity nail polish formulation 300.

Now referring to FIGS. 12A-C, instead of depositing the PSA film 500 and first coat (e.g. color coat) of nail polish formulation 300 in separate steps, they may be deposited onto the fingernail 410 simultaneously. For example, the film of PSA 500 may be stacked with the film of nail polish formulation 300 such that, when applied to the leading end 120 of applicator pad 100, the nail polish formulation 300 is in direct contact with the applicator pad 100, and the film of PSA 500 is exposed and closest to the fingernail 410, as shown in FIG. 12A. As with the other embodiments described herein, the applicator pad 100 may be rolled or rotated in direction D3, such that the film of PSA 500 and the film of nail polish formulation 300 are simultaneously deposited on the user's fingernail 410. As with other embodiments described herein, film of PSA 500 and of nail polish formulation 300 may be provided to the user pre-packaged with the applicator pad 100 and already positioned on the applicator pad 100, or the stacked film of PSA 500 and nail polish formulation 300 may be provided in a pre-packaged form to the user, with the applicator pad 100 being permanently or semi-permanently with the system. Because the film of PSA 500 does not need to be cured separately be electromagnetic energy, the two films can be stacked such that, following deposition onto the fingernail 410, the film of nail polish formulation 300 is exposed and ready to be cured by UV energy (or another adequate curing energy). However, it should be understood that the configuration shown and described in connection with FIGS. 12A-C may be more effective when the PSA base coat is not a UV-curable base coat. The film of nail polish formulation 300 stacked with the film of PSA 500 may be a color coat, and after the first curing step, another film of nail polish formulation 300 may be applied as a top coat on top of the cured color coat, and the top coat may then be cured in a similar fashion as the color coat

Regardless of whether the PSA film 500 is deposited by itself, or concurrently with a color coat of nail polish formulation 300, after the final coat of nail polish formulation 300 (e.g. a top coat) is cured, the user may wipe away any uncured nail polish formulation 300 on the skin, as well as any PSA film 500 extending beyond the nail 410 onto the skin.

There may be various considerations to take into account when providing the various nail polish formulation 300, films of PSA 500, and/or applicator pads 100 to the user. For example, in one embodiment, the user may be provided with a plurality of films of base coat, color coat, and top coat in a package for use in the system described above. The system may include a permanent or semi-permanent applicator pad 100, or one or more fresh applicator pads 100 may be provided with each package that contains the base coat, color coat, and top coat. The above-described use of films of PSA 500 for a base coat may provide advantages over the more traditional use of vinyl nails with PSA layers. For example, because the system automatically applies the film of PSA 500 to the fingernail 410, there is no difficulty or skill involved in the application, which is a drawback of the traditional vinyl nails. There is also no difficulty with selecting the correct size of the PSA film 500, because the nail polish formulation 300 applied to the PSA film 500 are precisely cured, allowing for any excess PSA film 500 to simply be wiped away. And since the color coat and top coats are automated, there is no need to manually apply a top coat as must be done with traditional vinyl nails. Further, because the color coat and top coat are thick, high viscosity resins, the manicure may last longer than typical vinyl nails because the overlying layers may be thicker and tougher than what is found in traditional vinyl nails.

If the package of base coat, color coat, and/or top coat is provided as individual, separate films, it may be preferable to include a transfer film 600 with each film of base coat, color coat, and top coat. Transfer film 600 may have a similar purpose as the “intermediate transfer films” mentioned above. As noted above, each package for the user may contain any desirable number of films of base coat, color coat, and top coat. For example, a single package may include ten films each of base coat, color coat, and top coat to provide for one complete manicure (e.g. a total of 30 films), or more than ten films each to allow for corrections (e.g. 12 films each for a total of 36 films). Each package may also include a single applicator pad 100 intended to be discarded after the manicure, or may include more than one applicator pad 100, or otherwise no applicator pads 100 (particularly if the system has a permanent or semi-permanent applicator pad 100).

Referring to FIG. 13A, a film of nail polish formulation 300 is shown positioned on a transfer film 600, which may be similar or identical in purpose to the “intermediate transfer film” mentioned above. The transfer film 600 may serve primarily to allow the film of nail polish formulation 300 to be positioned on the applicator pad 100 for later deposition onto the user's fingernail 410. For example, one or more sets of individual films of nail polish formulation 300 may be provided to the user stacked on corresponding transfer films 600. For example, a user may be provided with twelve films of nail polish formulation 300 formed as base coat on twelve corresponding transfer films 600. Each stack of base coat nail polish formulation 300 on transfer film 600 may be individually positioned on the applicator pad 100 prior to coating each finger 400. For example, the user may manually position the transfer film 600 onto the applicator pad by moving the stack in the direction D4 shown in FIG. 13A, until the transfer film 600 is positioned on the applicator pad 100, with the base coat nail polish formulation 300 on the transfer film 600 and exposed for use, as shown in FIG. 13B. In other embodiments, the stack of transfer film 600 and base coat nail polish formulation 300 may be fed into the system, with the system driving the applicator to pick up the stack, for example by rolling over the transfer film 600. With the transfer film 600 and film of base coat nail polish formulation 300 positioned on the applicator pad 100, the system may drive the applicator pad 100 as described above in connection with FIGS. 8A-C to deposit the film of base coat nail polish formulation 300 onto the user's fingernail 410, and then the system may cure the base coat nail polish formulation 300 as described above in connection with FIGS. 8D-E. As noted above, the curing may alternately take place through the applicator pad 100 (and through the transfer film 600 which may be optically clear), for example while the applicator pad 100 is pressing the nail polish formulation 300 onto the fingernail 410.

After the film of base coat nail polish formulation 300 has been applied and cured, the process may be repeated for a stack of transfer film 600 and color coat nail polish formulation 300, in substantially the same manner. Then, after the color coat is cured, the process may be completed again for a stack of transfer film 600 and topcoat nail polish formulation 300. This process (which is three steps if three coats are used) may be repeated for each finger in sequence until the manicure is finished.

If the transfer film 600 is used, it is preferable that the transfer film 600 has certain qualities. For example, the transfer film 600 is preferably formed of a material that has a hardness that is less than or equal to the hardness of the applicator pad 100. Thus, if the applicator pad 100 has a Shore durometer hardness of OO-10, it is preferable that the transfer film 600 has a Shore durometer hardness of OO-10 or less. This may be preferable because if the transfer film 600 is harder than the applicator pad 100, the hardness of the transfer film 600 may prohibit the applicator pad 100 from pressing the film of nail polish formulation 300 into all areas of the fingernail 410, including the hard-to-reach lateral folds. In one example, the transfer film 600 is formed of a silicone sheet, although the transfer film 600 may instead be formed of a thermoplastic elastomer, a thermoplastic urethane, foams thereof, hydrogel materials, or other similar materials. Although the hardness of the transfer film 600 may be selected based at least in part on the hardness of the applicator pad 100, in some embodiments, the transfer film 600 is formed of a material having a hardness of between about Shore OO-40 and Shore OO-70, although it may be preferable to have transfer film 600 formed of a material having a hardness of less than Shore durometer OO-40, less than Shore durometer OO-30, less than Shore durometer OO-20, or as noted above Shore durometer OO-10 or less. In some embodiments, the transfer film 600 may be formed to have areas or portions having different values of hardness. Further, as noted above, there may be an “adhesion hierarchy” between the nail polish formulation 300 and other components that may be utilized to help control where the nail polish formulation 300 does, or does not, transfer. For example, the material of the transfer film 600 should be selected so that the nail polish formulation 300 prefers to adhere to the user's fingernail 410 compared to the transfer film 600. Thus, as the applicator pad 100 is pressed onto the user's fingernail 410, the nail polish formulation 300 prefers to transfer from the transfer film 600 to the fingernail 410. In another embodiment, the transfer film 600 may take the form of a film that elongates, stretches, and/or conforms to the contours of the user's fingernail, such as a paraffin film. For example, such a transfer film 600 may have a nail polish formulation applied to one surface, and that surface may be brought into contact with the user's fingernail, with the film elongating, stretching, and/or conforming to the contours of the user's fingernail in the process (e.g. as a result of force applied by the applicator pad 100).

As should be clear, the nail polish formulation 300 must be exposed for application to the user's fingernail 410. However, it may be preferable to protect the nail polish formulation 300 prior to use, for example while it is in an unopened package. To that end, a protective layer 700 may be applied to the nail polish formulation 300 so that the nail polish formulation 300 is positioned between the protective layer 700 and the transfer film 600, as shown in FIG. 14A. Just prior to use, the protective layer 700 may be removed to expose the nail polish formulation 300. However, it is important that upon removal of the protective layer 700, the protective layer 700 does not pull up any of the nail polish formulation 300 off the transfer film 600. Thus, the protective layer 700 is preferably formed of a material which the nail polish formulation does not “like” and thus will not adhere to upon removal of the protective layer 700. For example, the protective layer 700 may be formed as a thin layer of silicone. The silicone may be, for example, a silicone from the Mold Star™ series, Oomoo™ series, or Solaris® series, all offered by Smooth-On, Inc.

The assembly shown in FIG. 14A may be a single unit, and a plurality of those single units may be provided in a package to the user. For example, a package may include thirty (or thirty-six) of the units shown in FIG. 14A, with ten (or twelve) of the units including nail polish formulation 300 formulated as a base coat, ten (or twelve) of the units including nail polish formulation 300 formulated as a color coat, and ten (or twelve) of the units including nail polish formulation 300 formulated as a top coat. However, rather than providing a plurality of single units, the nail polish formulation may be provided in other convenient forms.

For example, referring to FIG. 14B, instead of providing individual units, large stacks of alternating layers of transfer film 600, nail polish formulation 300, and protective layer 700 may be provided to the user in a package. The stacks may be provided in any convenient form. For example, a single stack of a plurality of base coat units may be provided, a single stack of a plurality of color coat units may be provided, and a single stack of top coat units may be provided. In other embodiments, each stack may include repeating sequences of base coat units, color coat units, and top coat units. One or more of these stacks may be inserted into the system, and each coat fed to the applicator pad just prior to use.

In another embodiment, shown in FIG. 15A, the nail polish formulation 300 may be provided on a continuous tape or roll. As shown in FIG. 15A, the protective layer 700 may be a continuous or substantially continuous layer, and the transfer film 600 may be a continuous or substantially continuous layer on top of the protective layer. A plurality of films of nail polish formulation 300 may be positioned at spaced apart locations on top of the transfer film 600. FIG. 15A illustrates the assembly in an unrolled configuration, for example its configuration upon being manufactured. The assembly may then be rolled so that the films of nail polish formulation 300 do not confront one another, as shown in FIG. 15B. In the rolled configuration, the protective layer 700 may be the interior-most layer. When the assembly is rolled, the exposed surfaces of the various films of nail polish formulation 300 are in contact with the protective layer of 700 of the next coil or turn in the roll, resulting in most of the films of nail polish formulation 300 being in contact with a portion of protective layer 700. Although not shown in FIGS. 15A-B, the protective layer 700 (with or without the transfer film 600) may extend a distance beyond the final film of nail polish formulation 300 so that all of the films of nail polish formulation 300 may be protected by the protective layer 700 when in the rolled condition. In other words, although the rolled configuration of FIG. 15B illustrates a number of films of nail polish formulation 300 exposed, the protective layer 700 preferably continues a greater distance than shown in FIG. 15B and wraps at least one more turn around the unit so that all of the films of nail polish formulation 300 are protected or covered by a portion of protective layer 700. The unit may be placed in the system and fed through the system so that the applicator pad 100 can roll over a first one of the films of nail polish formulation 300A to apply it to the fingernail, a curing step can be performed, and then the tape can be advanced until the adjacent film of nail polish formulation 300B is positioned over the fingernail, and the applicator pad 100 can roll over that film of nail polish formulation 300B to deposit it on the fingernail, and that layer may be cured next. In this configuration, the different formulations of nail polish formulation 300 may be alternated in the sequence in which they are intended to be applied. For example, referring to FIG. 15B, films 300A may be the base coat, films 300B may be the color coat, and films 300C may be the top coat. In this manner, each finger may be coated with base coat, color coat, and top coat by successively advancing the tape, depositing the resin onto the fingernail by rolling the applicator pad over the reverse side of the film of resin, and curing the resin on the fingernail before advancing the tape to the next film of resin. However, although the films of nail polish formulation 300 are illustrated as being separated by a space where there is no nail polish formulation, this is not necessary. In some embodiments, the films of nail polish formulation 300 can be substantially continuously positioned along the surface of transfer film 600, whether the continuous film of nail polish formulation 300 is the same formulation or has areas of different formulations, for example alternating areas of base coat, color coat, and top coat. Further, the above-described properties of the protective layer 700, in combination with the high viscosity formulation of nail polish formulation 300, allow the protective layer 700 to contact the nail polish formulation 300 without the nail polish formulation 300 sticking to the protective layer 700, and allows the assembly (including the transfer film 600) to be rolled into the configuration shown in FIG. 15B without resulting in the films of nail polish formulation 300 being squeezed or pressed such that they flow away from their initial positions.

FIG. 15C illustrates an exemplary mechanism for using the tape of FIGS. 15A-B to deposit the nail polish formulation 300 onto the user's fingernail 410. The system may be provided within a housing similar to housing 10 and may include components similar to those described in connection with FIGS. 1-2 and FIGS. 8A-E. For example, although not shown, a finger support may be provided on which the user may rest his or her finger 400. The applicator pad 100 may be similar or identical to applicator pads described above. In this particular example, the applicator pad 100 is generally cylindrical, similar to the embodiment described in connection with FIGS. 8A-E. The applicator pad 100 may receive a rod extending through a center thereof, and may be coupled to an applicator support that moves substantially linearly in a direction D6. As with the embodiment described in FIGS. 8A-E, the applicator pad 100 preferably is capable of rolling (e.g. rotating about its longitudinal center) as it is moved in the direction D6, either passively or actively by rotation of a supporting rod received within the applicator pad 100.

Still referring to FIG. 15C, the tape assembly of FIGS. 15A-B may be connected to a roller system that may include a supply roller 810 and a take-up roller 820. A first end of the tape roll may be coupled to the supply roller 810 and a second end of the tape roll may be coupled to the take-up roller 820, with an intermediate portion of the tape roll being in contact with the applicator pad 100. In particular, the protective layer 700 (labelled, but not separately illustrated, in FIG. 15C) may be in direct contact with the applicator pad 100 so that the transfer film 700 is positioned between the protective layer 600 and the films of nail polish formulation 300. In other words, the films of nail polish formulation 300 will be exposed and presented to confront the user's fingernail 410. The supply roller 810 and take-up roller 820 may be generally cylindrical and rotatable about their center axes in the directions D7, D8 respectively. Preferably, the supply roller 810 and take-up roller 820 each receive a support rod through their respective centers, the support rods being motor driven (or driven by another active drive mechanism) to rotate the corresponding roller in the same direction, in order to feed the tape from the supply roller 810 to the take-up roller 820.

In an exemplary use of the tape of FIGS. 15A-B, a user may receive the tape in a package in the rolled-up configuration shown in FIG. 15B. During transport and prior to use, the protective layer 700 will protect the films of nail polish formulation 300. In some embodiments, an applicator pad 100 may be packaged with the tape roll, although in other embodiments the applicator pad 100 is permanently or semi-permanently provided with the device housing the other components of the system. The user may open the package containing the tape roll and connect one end of the tape roll to the supply roller 810 and the other end of the tape roll to the take-up roller 820, ensuring that the intermediary portion of the tape is fed across the outer surface of applicator 100 and that the films of nail polish formulation 300 are facing away from the applicator pad 100. In the illustrated example, the transfer film 700 include films of nail polish formulation 300 spaced apart from one another and provided in sequence with formulations as base coat 300A, color coat 300B, and topcoat 300C. The user may insert his or her finger 400 into the housing and rest the finger 400 on a provided finger support. The user may then activate the system, for example by pressing a “start” button. Although not shown in FIG. 15C, the system may include the components described above in connection with FIGS. 1-2 and 8A-E, including an optical sensor 20, UV source 50, and/or a secondary UV source 50′ to pre-cure the films of nail polish formulation 300 as described above. Once the manicure is started, the system may detect the boundaries of the user's fingernail 410, and activate the supply roller 810 and take-up roller 820 (if necessary) to position the first film of base coat nail polish formulation 300A adjacent the applicator pad 100 and the fingernail 410. With the first film 300A in the desired position, the applicator pad 100 may be driven linearly in the direction D6. Preferably, although not necessarily, as the applicator pad 100 is driven in linear direction D6, the supply roller 810 and take-up roller 820 are also driven in direction D6 at the same rate as the applicator pad 100. As the applicator pad 100 presses the first film of base coat nail polish formulation 300A into the fingernail 410, the applicator pad 100 will conform to the fingernail 410 as described above to evenly cover the entire fingernail 410 with the base coat 300A. During the application of the first film of base coast nail polish formulation 300A (or during applications of other film coats), any one or more of the supply roller 810, take-up roller 820, and the applicator 100 may rotate, either actively (e.g. via an active drive mechanism such as a motor) or passively to assist in the deposition. This may be referred to as a first-phase feeding of the tape roll. After the film of base coat nail polish formulation 300A is transferred to the fingernail 410, the applicator pad 100 and rollers 810, 820 may be moved out of the way, for example by being driven backwards in a direction opposite D6, so that the UV source 50 may precisely cure the base coat 300A on the fingernail 410. However, in other embodiments, the UV curing may be performed through the applicator pad 100 (and transfer film 600) while the applicator pad 100 is pressing the nail polish formulation onto the fingernail. Before or after the curing step, the supply roller 810 and take-up roller 820 may be rotated in directions D7, D8 respectively until the next film of nail polish formulation, in this case the color coat 300B, is in the desired position relative to the applicator pad 100. This may be referred to as a second-stage feeding of the tape roll. The process may be repeated to deposit and cure the color coat 300B, and repeated again to deposit and cure the top coat 300C, with the take-up roller 820 taking up “spent” tape after each deposition. After the manicure of one finger is complete, the user may insert the next finger into the system and repeat the process until the entire manicure is complete. Following completion of the manicure, the user may wipe away any uncured nail polish formulation 320 that remains on the user's finger 400 outside the boundaries of the fingernail 410. This wiping may be performed manually by the user, or automatically. For example, as noted above, a separate applicator may be provided in the system that includes solvent, for example a solvent-soaked foam applicator, which may be dragged over the fingernail while the finger is in the system to remove any uncured nail polish. If the pre-curing procedure is used, there may be little or no uncured nail polish formulation 320 on the user's finger 400 that needs to be wiped away. It should be noted that the high viscosity nail polish formulation 300 described herein may have an affinity for paper and fibrous materials. In other words, in terms of the adhesion hierarchy described above, the high viscosity nail polish formulation 300, when uncured, may prefer to stick to paper and fibrous materials. Thus, if uncured nail polish formulation needs to be wiped from the skin of the user's finger 400 after the manicure is complete (or partially complete), a paper or fibrous wipe may be used, and the affinity of the high viscosity nail polish formulation 300 to the paper/fibrous wipe may help ensure that most or all of the uncured nail polish formulation 300 is removed from the user's skin.

FIG. 15C illustrates one configuration of relative movement between the applicator pad 100, the rollers 810, 820, and the user's finger 400. The directionality illustrated in FIG. 15C may be desirable in view of the direction that the tape roll is fed from the supply roller 810 to the take-up roller 820. In other words, as the applicator pad moves linearly left-to-right to deposit the nail polish formulation 300 onto the user's fingernail 400, the supply roller 810 and take-up roller 820 may be simultaneously moving linearly in the left-to-right direction and also rotating in the clockwise direction to feed the tape from the supply roller 810 to the take-up roller 820. However, in other embodiments, the position of the supply roller 810 and the take-up roller 820 may be reversed, and the directionality of linear movement and rotation may be changed, as long as the tape is fed from the supply roller 810 to the take-up roller 820.

Although the system of FIG. 15C is described as including both a supply roller 810 and a take-up roller 820, in some embodiments, the take-up roller 820 may be omitted. In such a configuration, a first end of the tape may be received on the supply roller 810, and as the tape is fed, the second end of the tape may be fed into another area, such as a waste compartment within the system. In this example, instead of the spent portion of the tape rolling onto the take-up roller 820, it may be pushed or driven into a separate compartment, which may allow for easier management of the spent tape. For example, the waste compartment may be removable from the system to allow for easy disposal of the spent tape after the completion of a manicure.

As has been noted above, many or all of the components of the tape roll shown in FIGS. 15A-B may be very soft, which may result in the tape being very stretchable. It may be undesirable for the tape roll to be able to stretch a large amount in the direction along which the tape is fed (e.g. in the left-to-right direction of FIG. 15A). If the supply roller 810 and take-up roller 820 cause the transfer layer 600 to significantly stretch, the film(s) of nail polish formulation 300 positioned thereon may be stretched and distorted, which may reduce the ability to apply an even thickness of the nail polish formulation 300 to the user's fingernail 410. Two possible solutions to help reduce the stretchiness of the tape in the feed direction are described below.

FIG. 16A illustrates a front view of the tape roll of FIG. 15A with an additional support component. The view of FIG. 16A is a view of one of the terminal ends of the tape when it is in the unrolled condition. FIG. 16B is a top view of the tape in the unrolled condition. In addition to the films of nail polish formulation 300, the transfer film 600, and the protective layer 700 (not visible in FIG. 16B), one or more support lines 900 are provided on the tape. In the illustrated configuration, two support lines 900 are provided running part of or the entire length of the tape, with the support lines 900 being positioned so that they do not overlap any portion of a film of nail polish formulation 300 that will be applied to a user's fingernail 410. The support lines 900 may be formed of a string or another substantially continuous thread or filament, and may be significantly less stretchable or elastic compared to the transfer film 600 and/or the protective layer 700. As the tape is fed from supply roller 810 to take-up roller 820, the support lines 900 may provide extra support for the rollers to effectively feed the tape without allowing the transfer film 600 to stretch significantly in the direction of the feed. However, as noted above, the support lines 900 are preferably positioned out of the way of the films of nail polish formulation 300 so that, when the applicator pad 100 presses the nail polish formulation 300 into the fingernail 410, the relative stiffness of the support lines 900 does not affect the ability of the applicator pad 100 to conform to the contours of the fingernail 410. In the illustrated embodiment, the support lines 900 are at least partially embedded into the transfer film 600, although in other embodiments the support lines 900 may be partially or completely embedded in one or both of the transfer film 600 and/or protective layer 700, or alternately may be coupled to a surface of either the transfer film 600 or protective layer 700, or any combination of the above. Although the support lines 900 may take the form of a string or filament, for example with a circular cross-section, the support lines 900 may take other forms. For example, the support lines 900 may instead be relatively flat, similar to a piece of tape. For example, the support lines 900 may be formed of a polyimide film having a width significantly larger than its thickness. In one example, each support line 900 may be formed as a substantially rectangular tape having a width of about 3 mm.

FIGS. 17A-B illustrate the use of a support layer 900′ instead of the support lines 900 of FIGS. 16A-B. As best illustrated in FIG. 17A, rather than having one or more individual support lines 900, an entire support layer 900′ is provided between the protective layer 700 and the transfer layer 600. The support layer 900′ may have a substantially similar shape as the protective layer 700 and the transfer layer 600. In the top-down view of FIG. 17B, the support layer 900′ is not visible, but would have similar or identical boundaries as the illustrated transfer layer 600. The purpose of the support layer 900′ is the same as support lines 900. In other words, support layer 900′ may provide stiffness to the tape assembly to avoid the films of resin 300 being damaged by preventing the transfer film 600 from overly stretching in the feed direction when being fed between supply roller 810 and take-up roller 820. However, one potential downside of using support layer 900′ instead of support lines 900 is that, when the applicator pad 100 presses the films of nail polish formulation 300 into the user's fingernail 410, the protective layer 900′ is positioned between the applicator pad 100 and the film of nail polish formulation 300, which may result in a loss of the ability of the applicator pad 100 to fully conform to the contours of the user's fingernail 410.

Although the systems and methods described in connection with FIGS. 13A-17B are described in terms of nail polish formulation 300, it should be understood that a PSA film 500 (including a UV-curable PSA, which may be a liquid PSA) may be used as a base coat to replace any base coat nail polish formulation 300 described herein. For example, if the user is provided with a plurality of individual films (similar to FIG. 14A) of a stack of the films (similar to FIG. 14B), the user may be provided with ten (or twelve) PSA films 500 for the base coat, ten (or twelve) films of nail polish formulation 300 for the color coat, and another ten (or twelve) films of nail polish formulation 300 for the top coat. Similarly, if the user is provided with a tape roll similar to that shown and described in connection with FIGS. 15A-17B, the base coat nail polish formulation 300 may be replaced with a PSA film 500. If the PSA films 500 are provided in place of the base coat nail polish formulation 300, the process is generally the same for the manicure, with the exception that the PSA film 500 may not be cured (unless the PSA is provided as a UV-curable PSA), as described in connection with FIGS. 11A-11C. And further, instead of merely replacing the base coat nail polish formulation 300 with the PSA film 500, the PSA film 500 and color coat nail polish formulation 300 may be layered on top of one another, similar to that described in connection with FIGS. 12A-C. For example, if the user is provided with a tape roll similar to that described in connection with FIGS. 15A-17B, the color coat nail polish formulation 300B may be positioned on top of the transfer layer 600, and the film of PSA 500 may be positioned on top of the color coat nail polish formulation 300B. Thus, during the application process, as the tape is fed from the supply roller 810 to the take-up roller 820, the initial deposition by the applicator pad 100 is of both the PSA film 500 and the color coat nail polish formulation 300B. The two layers may be deposited simultaneously, and then the color coat nail polish formulation 300B on the fingernail 410 may be cured, followed by a deposition and curing of the top coat nail polish formulation 300C. As a result, there would be only two depositions per finger 410 in a manicure. The same concept may be applied if, instead of the tape roll, individual films or stacks of individual films are provided to the user. For example, the user may be provided with a total of ten (or twelve) films that include the PSA film 500 stacked on the film of color coat nail polish formulation 300B, and a total of ten (or twelve) films of top coat nail polish formulation 300C. However, it should be understood that the pre-curing process may be difficult to use effectively if a non-curable PSA film 500 is used as a base coat. But if the PSA film 500 is provided as a UV-curable PSA, the pre-curing process may be used similar to the method described above.

In some embodiments, the package that contains the nail polish formulation(s) 300 and/or PSA film(s) 500 and/or applicator pad(s) 100 may be a vacuum-formed packet with a foil lid, although the packaging may take various other forms. Regardless of the particular form of the packaging, the package and/or components within the package may include additional features to assist the system in determining information regarding the components enclosed in the package. For example, the packaging (or the components that will be inserted into the system, such as a tape roll similar to that shown in FIGS. 15A-17B or the individual or stacked films shown in FIGS. 14A-B) may include an identifying chip or similar feature that contains information specific to the contents of the package. For example, each roll of tape may include an RFID chip (or other similar device) that may communicate with a corresponding RFID reader (or other suitable reader device) within the system. The information contained in the chip may include any useful information, for example including what coats are included in the package (e.g. base coat and/or color coat and/or top coat) as well as the number of each coat, and any particular information about the coat. For example, the information may identify the base coat as a PSA film 500 or a high viscosity nail polish formulation 300. The information may also identify if a PSA film 500 is provided as a base coat with a high viscosity nail polish formulation 300 as a color coat that is provided stacked with the PSA film 500 (as described in connection with FIGS. 12A-C). This information may help the system determine, for example, how many coats are applied to each fingernail, whether any forces on application pad 100 need to be modified depending on what coat(s) are being applied, etc. Still further, different color coats may have different optimal curing times. That information may be provided within the identifying chip to instruct the UV source 50 to activate for a pre-determined amount of time specific to the color coat being used in the manicure. If the nail polish formulation (and/or PSA films) are provided on a roll of tape similar to that described in connection with FIGS. 15A-17B, information may be encoded regarding where the different films are located along the strip, which may allow the system to more accurately feed the tape in the system to optimally position each film relative to the applicator pad and the user's fingernail prior to deposition onto the user's fingernail. In other embodiments when the nail polish formulation (and/or PSA films) are provided as a tape roll, a standard distance between each film of nail polish formulation (or PSA) may be provided, and the system may feed the tape from the supply roller 810 to the take-up roller 820 a fixed distance prior to each deposition step. In this embodiment, the system may keep a count of how many deposition steps have been performed in order to keep track of which films have been applied and which films are still left to be applied, etc. In other embodiments, the diameter of the tape on the supply roller 810 (or on the take-up roller 820) may be monitored, for example by a stick or a rod contacting the outer diameter of the supply roller 810 (or the take-up roller 820), with the position of the stick or the rod corresponding to a diameter of the tape remaining on the supply roller 810 (or the tape spent on the take-up roller 820). The diameter may directly relate to how many application steps have been performed (or how many remain), which may allow the system to keep track of which films have been applied and which films are still left to be applied, etc.

Although FIGS. 15A-17B generally describe one type of system architecture in which an applicator pad presses nail polish formulation from a transfer film onto the user's fingernail, it should be clear from the above description that other mechanisms and system architectures are possible. For example, the general concept described in connection with FIGS. 6A-7C in which nail polish formulation is directly picked up by an applicator pad, and then transferred from the applicator pad to the user's fingernail, may be employed with a tape-like mechanism. FIG. 18A illustrates one such embodiment in which applicator pad 100 interacts with a tape roll to directly pick up nail polish formulation 300 from a transfer tape 600′. In this embodiment, the tape roll may be provided as a continuous tape roll, and may be either provided with a supply roller 810 and a take-up roller 820, or otherwise may be coupled to one or both rollers by the end user, if the rollers are permanent or semi-permanent members of the system. The continuous tape roll of FIG. 18A may be substantially similar to the continuous tape roll of FIG. 15B, with certain exceptions. Although not illustrated in FIG. 18A, the tape roll of FIG. 18A may be provided with a protective layer similar or identical to protective layer 700 of FIG. 15B, for example to help protect the nail polish formulation 300 during storage, transport, etc. The nail polish formulation 300 may be similar or identical to any other nail polish formulation described herein, and may be provided as the same formulation or different formulations along the length of the tape, for example, sequences of base coat, color coat, and top coat, or in any other desired sequence or grouping (including with more than three or less than three different formulations). In use, the tape roll of FIG. 18A may be loaded into a system similar to those described above, and the system may actively or passively rotate one or both of the supply roller 810 and take-up roller 820 in the same direction D9 (clockwise in the view of FIG. 18A) to advance the transfer tape 600′ in direction D10 so that a film of nail polish formulation 300 is positioned near or adjacent the applicator pad 100. The applicator pad 100 may be rotated or rolled in direction D11, in substantially the same fashion as described in connection with FIGS. 6A-B, to transfer the nail polish formulation 300 from the transfer tape 600′ to the applicator pad 100. As with other embodiments described herein, the applicator pad 100 may engage the nail polish formulation 300 with types of motion other than rolling or rotating, such as pressing in a vertical direction, or in any other suitable fashion. Once the nail polish formulation 300 is positioned on the applicator pad 100, the applicator pad may be moved (or the transfer tape 600′ and associated components may be moved) as necessary so that the applicator pad 100 may be positioned adjacent a user's fingernail in the system, and the nail polish formulation 300 may be transferred to the user's fingernail in substantially the same fashion as described above in connection with FIGS. 7A-C. The nail polish formulation 300 may be cured and the process may continue as described above until the manicure is complete, with the applicator pad 100 picking up additional nail polish formulation 300 from transfer tape 600′ as necessary for further depositions (e.g. nail polish formulation 300 may be transferred to applicator pad 100 after each deposition, or otherwise after a set number of depositions). It should be understood that, in FIG. 18A, the smaller films of nail polish formulation 300 illustrated to the right of the applicator pad 100 represent prior films of nail polish formulation 300 that have previously been transferred to the applicator pad 100 and deposited onto the user's fingernail, as it is contemplated that, if nail polish formulation 300 is provided in discrete (or spaced apart) films, each discrete film may have more material than is expected to be picked up by the applicator pad 100, in order to ensure that the applicator pad 100 is fully loaded with nail polish formulation 300 after each step of transferring the nail polish formulation 300 from the transfer tape 600′ to the applicator pad 100.

One notable difference between the systems of FIG. 15C and FIG. 18A is that, in the system of FIG. 18A, the transfer tape 600′ is not pressed by the applicator pad 100 toward the user's fingernail for the deposition of the nail polish formulation 300. As a result, while transfer film 600 is described above as preferably having a hardness that is equal to or less than the hardness of the applicator pad 100, this relationship need not exist for the transfer tape 600′ of FIG. 18A. In fact, it may be preferable for the transfer tape 600′ to be significantly less compliant than the applicator pad 100. In other words, because the portion of the transfer tape 600′ that the applicator pad 100 presses against may be suspended between adjacent rollers 810, 820. Thus, it may be desirable for the transfer tape 600′ to have some rigidity. Even if the transfer tape 600′ was not suspended, it may be preferable for the transfer tape 600′ to have some rigidity so that the transfer tape 600′ does not deform (or significantly deform) when the applicator pad 100 presses against the transfer tape 600′ to pick up nail polish formulation 300. In some examples, the transfer tape 600′ may be formed of a material with a cellulose base, similar to cellulose acetate photography film, although various materials may be suitable. The system of FIG. 18A may provide various benefits compared to the system of FIGS. 15A-C. For example, various features may be built into the roll of transfer tape 600′ that might be difficult to accomplish with the roll of transfer film 600. In one particular example, perforations may be provided with transfer tape 600′ because of its non-compliance relative to transfer film 600, which may assist in tearing the transfer tape 600′ as desired. Further, because of the relative non-compliance of transfer tape 600′ compared to transfer film 600, the transfer tape 600′ may be formed of relatively thin material, allowing for an overall smaller roll of transfer tape 600′ compared to transfer film 600. Although it is contemplated that a roll of transfer tape 600′ with pre-deposited nail polish formulation 300 may be provided to the user as a packaged item with or without an applicator pad 100, it may be preferable to provide an applicator pad in the package. This may be because, for example, the applicator pad 100 is in direct contact with nail polish formulation 300, which may result in the applicator pad 100 becoming dirty over time, whereas the applicator pad 100 in the system of FIGS. 15A-C may never need to directly contact any nail polish formulation.

As noted above, because the applicator pad 100 of FIG. 18A is in direct contact with nail polish formulation 300, it may become dirty as the applicator pad 100 picks up nail polish formulation 300 from the transfer tape 600′ and deposits it on the user's fingernail. Although it is contemplated that a new applicator pad 100 may be able to effectively provide an entire manicure worth of nail polish deposits without needing to be cleaned, in other embodiments, the system may be provided with a mechanism for actively cleaning the applicator pad 100. For example, FIG. 18B illustrates a cleaning roll 830 that may be provided with the system. After applicator pad 100 deposits nail polish formulation 300 form the applicator pad 100 to the user's fingernail, it may be expected that some amount residual nail polish formulation 300′ may remain on the applicator pad 100. After any given step of depositing nail polish formulation 300 from the applicator pad 100 to the user's fingernail, the applicator pad 100 may be moved, repositioned, and/or re-oriented so that the leading end of the applicator pad 100 is positioned adjacent a cleaning roller 830, which may be positioned spaced away from other components of the system. The applicator pad 100 may be rotated or rolled in direction D12 in order to make contact between the applicator pad 100 and the cleaning roller 830. However, it should be understood that any type of motion may be suitable the moves the leading end of the applicator pad 100 across or through a range of contact with the cleaning roller 830. The cleaning roller 830 may also be actively rotated in a direction D13 during the contact with applicator pad 100 (counterclockwise in the view of FIG. 18B), although in other embodiments the cleaning roller 830 may be purely passively rotated via the contact with the applicator pad 100. As the applicator pad 100 drags across the surface of the cleaning roller 830, the residual nail polish 300′ may be transferred from the applicator pad 100 to the cleaning roller 830, to provide a relatively clean surface of the applicator pad 100 for the next step of transferring nail polish formulation 300 from the transfer tape 600′ to the applicator pad 100. The cleaning roller 830 may be disposable and provided in a package with the transfer tape 600′ (and/or the applicator pad 100), or otherwise may be a permanent or semi-permanent member of the system that can be removed, cleaned, and replaced between manicures. Although the inclusion of cleaning roller 830 may obviate the need to provide a fresh applicator pad 100 with each package of transfer tape 600′, it still may be desirable to include a fresh applicator pad 100 with each package of transfer tape 600. It should also be understood that in order to facilitate movement of the nail polish formulation between surfaces, preferably, the nail polish formulation has a greater affinity for the applicator pad 100 than the transfer tape 600′, and a greater affinity for the cleaning roller 830 than the applicator pad 100, although it should be understood that these affinity hierarchies are not strictly required in all embodiments. Further, although the system of FIGS. 18A-B is described as including both a supply roller 810 and a take-up roller 820, in some embodiments, as noted above in connection with FIG. 15C, the take-up roller 820 may be omitted, with the second end of the tape being fed into a desired area, such as a waste compartment.

In some embodiments, the applicator pad 100 may be omitted, with a transfer film applied directly to the user's fingernail. For example, a highly conformable transfer film may be provided, similar or identical to transfer film 600. That transfer film may include nail polish formulation positioned thereon substantially as described above. Instead of pressing the nail polish formulation onto the user's fingernail via an applicator pad, the transfer film may include a support backing that is pulled or pushed onto the user's fingernail. For example, a support backing of relatively thick and/or relatively hard and/or relatively rigid material such as paper may be provided on a side of the transfer film opposite the nail polish formulation. The transfer film may be positioned above the user's fingernail, and pulled or pressed down onto the user's fingernail to transfer the nail polish formulation to the user's fingernail. In some embodiments, an applicator device may be provided to press the transfer film downward onto the user's fingernail. In some embodiments, the transfer film may be provided in a unit, for example a cartridge, that may be moved downward into contact with the user's fingernail to transfer the nail polish formulation from the transfer film to the user's fingernail. In some embodiments, the applicator (or other device) pressing down or pulling down on the transfer film is supported at areas on either or both sides of the fingernail, which may facilitate the transfer film flexing or otherwise conforming to the contours of the user's fingernail. After nail polish formulation is transferred from the transfer film to the user's fingernail, it may be cured via any of the mechanisms described above, and the transfer film may be fed in a direction to present the next area of nail polish formulation so that the next area of nail polish formulation may be transferred to the user's fingernail via a subsequent application. In some embodiments, the unit may structurally and/or conceptually resemble a cassette tape, where the bottom of the cassette tape presents the nail polish formulation toward the user's fingernail, and the transfer film can unspool from one roller of the unit while spent transfer film can simultaneously spool onto a second roller of the unit. In this example, the relatively rigid and/or relatively thick support backing may function, alone or in combination with another device, as the applicator. In some embodiments, a separate applicator may be provided that presses down (or pulls down) on the transfer film, and in such embodiments the transfer film may or may not have a supporting layer positioned thereon. If provided as a cassette-type of unit, a protective covering may be provided at the exposed area of the cassette, so that during storage, the internal components of the unit (such as the nail polish formulation) are protected, including being protected from drying, etc. In such an embodiment, the protective covering may be removed by the user just prior to insertion of the unit into the system to expose the nail polish formulation in preparation for the manicure. After completion of the manicure, the unit may be removed from the system and discarded by the user.

For example, FIGS. 19A-H illustrate a system similar to that described above in various stages of application of nail polish to a user's fingernail. Instead of including an applicator pad similar to applicator pad 100, an applicator 100′ may be used to press the transfer film 600 against the user's fingernail 410. In the illustrated example, applicator 100′ is generally arcuate. In one example, applicator 100′ may include two posts or supports 110′ intended to be positioned on opposite sides of the user's finger 400, with a central member 120′ extending therebetween. In some examples, the central member 120′ may be a flexible film or tape that has enough rigidity to maintain a generally tented or arcuate shape, with the arc extending away from the user's fingernail 410 in an operating condition. In other embodiments, the applicator 100′ may be a unitary or integral member. In some embodiments, the arcuate shape of center portion 120′ may generally resemble a typical arc of a fingernail 410 between the lateral folds, although such similarity is not required. Applicator 100′ may be secured to a cassette or other member, such as cartridge 1000, described in greater detail below. The cartridge 1000 is omitted from FIGS. 19A-H for purposes of clarity of illustration.

The transfer film 600 shown in FIGS. 19A-H may be substantially similar or identical to transfer film 600 described above. In the illustrated embodiment, transfer film 600 is formed of a highly conformable material, such as any of the silicones described above, and may have a thickness of a few millimeters, such as between about 1 mm and about 5 mm, including about 2 mm, about 3 mm, and about 4 mm, although other thicknesses may be suitable. Nail polish formulation 300 may be positioned on the transfer film 600 in substantially the same manner as described above in prior embodiments. Although nail polish formulation 300 is illustrated in FIGS. 19A-H as a continuous film, it should be understood that the nail polish formulation 300 may alternatively be provided in individual areas spaced apart from one another, with the areas being of the same formulation or of different formulations, such as base, top, and/or color coats. Also, as noted above, even if nail polish formulation 300 is provided as a continuous film, different areas of the film may be provided as different formulations. As should be understood, nail polish formulation 300 may have substantially the same or an identical compositions as nail polish formulation 300 described above. In some embodiments, a support layer 900′ may be provided on transfer film 600 opposite the nail polish formulation 300, although the support layer 900′ may be omitted in other embodiments. The support layer 900′ may be substantially similar or identical to support layer 900′ described above, although in the illustrated embodiment, the support layer 900′ may provide a somewhat different functionality compared to the support layer 900′ of FIGS. 17A-B. As will be described below, the applicator 100′ is adapted to push the tape, which may include the support layer 900′, the transfer film 600 and the nail polish formulation 300) into the user's fingernail 410. Because the transfer film 600 is formed of a highly conformable material, it may be preferable for applicator to press against support layer 900′ to better transfer forces and push the tape into the user's fingernail 410. Otherwise, if the applicator 100′ directly contacted the transfer film 600, the high conformability of the transfer film 600 might locally deform and not allow for even pressing of the nail polish formulation 300 into the user's fingernail 410.

Referring still to FIG. 19A, an initial step in a manicure is illustrated. Both (a) the applicator 100′ and (b) the tape that includes (i) the transfer film 600, (ii) the nail polish formulation 300, and (iii) the support layer 900′ (if included), are supported by and/or within the cartridge 1000 described below. As described in greater detail below, only a portion of the tape within the cartridge 1000 is illustrated in FIGS. 19A-H, and additional length of the tape may be provided within the cartridge 1000. A user may place his or her finger 400 into the system (which may be similar to any of the housings and systems described above), with the finger 400 being positioned under the tape. In some embodiments, the cartridge 1000 accommodating the tape may be moved into a position over the user's finger 400 only after the user inserts his or her finger 400 into the system. Once the finger 400 is positioned under the nail polish formulation 300, the applicator 100′ may be driven in a direction D14 downwardly toward the finger 400. In some embodiments, the tape and the applicator 100′ may both be coupled to the cartridge 1000 in a manner such that driving the cartridge 1000 downward drives the applicator 100′ and the tape downward simultaneously. Although the tape (specifically the support layer 900′ in the illustrated embodiment) is shown in FIG. 19A as being positioned a spaced distance from the supports 110′ of applicator 100′, the illustrated distance may be greater or smaller, including about zero with the support layer 900′ in contact with the supports 110′ of applicator 100′. However, in other embodiments, the applicator 100′ may move relative to the tape, with the tape remaining in substantially the same position relative to the fingernail 410 but for the force of the applicator 100′ pressing the tape onto the nail 410.

As illustrated in FIG. 19B, the applicator 100′ continues to move together downwardly in direction D14 with the tape until the nail polish formulation 300 begins to contact the fingernail 410. After contact is made between the tape and the fingernail 410, as shown in FIG. 19C, the applicator 100′ and tape continue moving downward in direction D14 together. However, the portion of the tape between the supports 110′ continues to deform as the supports 110′ move beyond the fingernail 410. The applicator 100′ and the tape continue to be moved downward relative to the fingernail 410, as shown in FIG. 19D, until the portion of the tape in contact with the user's fingernail 410 conforms to the contours of the user's fingernail. As with the embodiments described above, the conformability of the transfer film 600 and the viscosity of the nail polish formulation 300 help ensure that the nail polish formulation 300 is deposited onto the entire fingernail 410, including the proximal and lateral folds. Also, similar to the embodiment described above, the nail polish formulation 300 preferably has an adhesion preference to the user's fingernail 410 (or another layer of nail polish formulation on the fingernail 410) compared to the transfer film 600. As a result, after applicator 100′ and the tape start to move in the opposite direction D15 away from the fingernail 410, the portion of the nail polish formulation 300 that contacted the user's finger 400 will transfer from the transfer film 600 to the fingernail 410, as shown in FIG. 19E.

The applicator 100′ and tape may continue to be driven in direction D15 away from the user's finger 400, as shown in FIG. 19F, until the applicator 100′ returns to its original position, as shown in FIG. 19G. At this point, a layer of nail polish formulation 300 has been deposited on the user's fingernail 410, but remains uncured. Similar to embodiments described above, the cartridge containing the applicator 100′ and the tape may be moved away from the user's fingernail 410 at this point, and an energy source within the system may selectively cure the nail polish formulation 300, in substantially the same manner as described in connection with other embodiments above. Still referring to FIG. 19G, the system may then prepare for a second deposition of nail polish formulation 300. For example, the tape may be advanced in direction D16 while the applicator 100′ remains stationary, so that a new area of nail polish formulation 300 is positioned between the supports 110′ of applicator 100′, as shown in FIG. 19H. As noted above, different formulations of nail polish formulation 300 may be provided along transfer film 600 so that, after the deposition and curing of a first layer of nail polish formulation 300 (for example a base coat), the tape may be advanced until a second layer of nail polish formulation 300 (for example a color coat) is positioned between the supports 110′. The steps of the process shown in FIGS. 19A-H may be repeated to deposit and cure as many layers of nail polish formulation 300 onto the user's fingernail, and for as many fingers or toes as is desired, until the manicure is complete.

FIGS. 20A-B illustrate one example of cartridge 1000. The cartridge 1000 may be substantially rectangular, although various other shapes may be suitable. The cartridge 1000 may include an opening or recess 1010 near a bottom and center area of the cartridge 1000. In the illustrated embodiment, recess 1010 is arcuate or semicircular, and may be shaped to receive a tip of a finger 400 fully or partially therein. The applicator 100′ may be fixed within the cartridge 1000 near or adjacent the recess 1010 so that the supports 110′ of the applicator 100′ are generally positioned on opposites side of the recess 1010. Although applicator 100′ is illustrated in solid lines in FIG. 20A, the applicator 100′ may not be visible in the view of FIG. 20A as it is at least partially encased by cartridge 1000.

Cartridge 1000 may also include a supply roller 1020 and a take-up roller 1030 therein. In the illustrated embodiment, supply roller 1020 is positioned on a first side of applicator 100′ with the take-up roller 1030 being positioned on the opposite side of applicator 100′. The supply roller 1020 and take-up roller 1030 may each be circular or cylindrical, and are each preferably capable of rotating about a center of the roller. The cartridge 1000 may include a tape 1100, the tape 1100 being similar or identical to that shown and described in connection with FIGS. 19A-H. In other words, tape 1100 may be formed of one or more of transfer film 600, nail polish formulation 300, and support layer 900′, including in a similar or identical configuration as described in connection with any of the above embodiments. One end of tape 1100 may be coupled to the supply roller 1020, and an opposite end of the tape 1100 may be coupled to the take-up roller 1030. As illustrated, the tape 1100 may include one or more windings or coils around the supply roller 1020 and/or take-up roller 1030. Although the individual components of tape 1100 are not separately identified in FIGS. 20A-B, the nail polish formulation 300 is preferably oriented so that it faces away from the applicator 100′ (e.g. toward the bottom of the view in FIG. 20A), the support layer 900′ (if included) is preferably oriented so that it faces toward the applicator 100′ (e.g. toward the top of the view of FIG. 20A), and the transfer film 600 is preferably oriented between the applicator 100′ and the nail polish formulation 300.

Still referring to FIGS. 20A-B, tape 1100 preferably extends downwardly from supply roller 1020 toward a bottom of the cartridge 1000 (in the view of FIG. 20A), then in a direction substantially parallel to the bottom of the cartridge 1000 so that a portion of the tape traverses recess 1010 either directly below, or in contact with, the supports 110′ of applicator 100′. After the tape 1000 passes beyond the applicator 100′, it may extend back upwardly toward take-up roller 1030. When portions of the tape 1000 are coiled or wound up in multiple turns so that multiple layers of the tape 1000 are in contact with one another, the tape 1000 may have a configuration similar to that shown in FIG. 15B, in which one or more portions of the nail polish formulation 300 are in contact with and/or protected by support layer 900′. Thus, in some embodiments, support layer 900′ may be similar or identical to protective layer 700, in structure and/or function.

In an initial condition of the cartridge 1000, the tape 1100 may be wound multiple turns around the supply roller 1020, and few or no turns around the take-up roller 1030. In this initial condition, at least some nail polish formulation 300 on the tape 1100 may be exposed and face toward the bottom of the cartridge 1000 (and toward a user's fingernail 410 when in an operative condition). In one embodiment, the cartridge 1000 may be open substantially along the boundary of the recess 1010, so that the opening in the cartridge 1000 is about equal to the width of the recess 1010 at the base of the cartridge. In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 20B, the bottom of cartridge 1000 may be open for a distance on one or both sides of the cartridge 1000 extending beyond the border of the recess 1010. In either case, a length of tape 1100 is exposed at the recess 1010 so that the cartridge 1000—and specifically the nail polish formulation 300 presented by tape 1100—may be pressed onto a user's fingernail 410.

The use of cartridge 1000 may be substantially similar or identical to the description above in connection with FIGS. 19A-H, and thus will not be described in further detail herein. However, it should be understood that cartridge 1000 may be coupled or otherwise supported within the system in any suitable fashion that allows the cartridge 1000 to be moved (i) down toward the user's fingernail 410; (ii) up away from the user's fingernail 410; (iii) laterally away from the user's fingernail 410 to allow for curing; and (iv) to advance tape 1100 from supply roller 1020 toward take-up roller 1030 (or from take-up roller 1030 toward supply roller 1020). However, in some embodiments, less than all of the movements (i) through (iv) may be required.

In one example, supply roller 1020 and take-up roller 1030 may both be annular or otherwise define a central recess, and the cartridge 1000 may similarly define openings that extend through a center of the supply roller 1020 and take-up roller 1030. For example, the cartridge 1000 may define two substantially circular openings which may be slid onto or over corresponding cartridge supports in the system housing to hold the cartridge 1000 in a desired position. Those cartridge supports may be translatable in one, two, or three linear directions to move the cartridge 1000 in corresponding linear directions, and one or both of the cartridge supports may be rotatable to cause rotation of the supply roller 1020 and/or the take-up roller 1030 to advance the tape 1100 from the supply roller 1020 to the take-up roller 1030. In this exemplary embodiment, the cartridge supports of the system housing may be advanced downward toward a user's fingernail 410 when the user's finger 400 is positioned underneath recess 1010. As the cartridge 1000 is advanced, the exposed portion of tape 1010 contacts the user's fingernail 410, and as movement continues, the applicator 100′ may help the tape 1100 deform over the user's fingernail 410 as described in connection with FIGS. 19A-D to deposit a layer of nail polish formulation 300. Then, the cartridge supports may be moved upward and/or away from the user's fingernail 410 to allow for an optical pathway between the curing energy source and the nail polish formulation 300 deposited on the fingernail 410 to cure the layer of nail polish formulation 300. Before or after the curing step, the supply roller 1020 and/or take-up roller 1030 may be rotated (e.g. counterclockwise in the view of FIG. 20A) to advance the tape toward the take-up roller 1030. This may result in spent portions of the tape 1100 to begin (or continue) to wind around take-up roller 1030, with a fresh area of nail polish formulation 300 on the tape 1100 moving into the area of recess 1010 for a successive deposition onto the user's fingernail 410 (either the same fingernail or the fingernail of a different finger).

The cartridge 1000 may be supplied with enough tape 1100 to perform a complete manicure (e.g. for ten fingers), and optionally with enough additional tape 1100 to perform additional depositions for “fixes” of one or more fingernails as desired, similar as described above. With this configuration, a user may use a single cartridge 1000 for a manicuring session, and dispose of the cartridge 1000 after a satisfactory completion of the manicure. The configuration of cartridge 1000 may allow for relatively easy loading of the cartridge 1000 into the system housing, and relatively easy disposal of the cartridge 1000 upon completion, while reducing or eliminating the likelihood of nail polish formulation inadvertently depositing within the system or elsewhere (e.g. reducing the overall “messiness” of the process). In some embodiments, although not illustrated, the cartridge 1000 may be provided to the user with a protective covering of some or all portions of the recess 1010 in order to create a partial or complete seal of the cartridge. For example, a foil or plastic layer may be provided over the recess 1010 so that the nail polish formulation 300 is unlikely to dry out, inadvertently cure, or otherwise suffer from degradation or unwanted effects of exposure to air or light. In some embodiments, it may be preferable that cartridge 1000 partially or completely blocks curing energy, such as ultraviolet light, through the cartridge 1000 in order to help prevent premature and/or unintentional curing of the nail polish formulation 300 prior to the manicure. Just prior to inserting the cartridge 1000 into the system housing, the user may peel off or otherwise remove the protective layer, exposing the recess 1010 in preparation for the manicure session.

FIGS. 21A-E illustrate components of a cartridge 2000 of a system, and method of using the cartridge generally similar to that shown and described in connection with FIGS. 19A-20B. It should be understood that, where appropriate, items and methods described in connection with the system of FIGS. 19A-20 may be added to or substituted with the system and method shown and described in connection with FIGS. 21A-E, and vice versa.

Now referring to FIG. 21A, it should be understood that the outer housing or casing 2400 of cartridge 2000 is omitted for clarity of illustration. Cartridge 2000 may include an applicator 2100 generally similar to applicator 100′ described above. As with the embodiment described above, applicator 2100 may be provided as integral with, or otherwise coupled to cartridge 2000, but in other embodiments the applicator 2100 may be a part of the housing of the system into which the cartridge 2000 is inserted, so that each individual cartridge 2000 does not come with its own applicator 2100. Applicator 2100 may generally be used press nail polish formulation onto a user's fingernail. In the illustrated example, applicator 2100 is generally arcuate, and includes two guide pins 2110 at generally opposite ends of the applicator 2100. The guide pins 2110 may function to help guide tape 2200 (which may support nail polish formulation) around the applicator 2100 as the tape 2200 as it moves between supply roller 2020 and take-up roller 2030.

Applicator 2100 may take a similar or the same form as applicator 100′. For example, applicator 2100 may be a flexible film or tape that has enough rigidity to maintain a generally tented or arcuate shape, the flexible film or tape extending between guide pins 2110. If applicator 2100 is provided as a flexible film, it may be formed of a conformable material such as an elastic band, a soft plastic sheet, such as polytetrafluoroethylene (“PTFE”), or similar materials. However, the applicator 2100 may instead be formed of a more rigid material, such as a hard plastic material. The guide pins 2110 may be formed integrally with or as separate members from the applicator 2100. For example, if the applicator 2100 is formed as a rigid member, the guide pins 2110 may be integral with the applicator 2100. If the guide pins 2110 are integral with the applicator 2100, the guide pins may simply be a rounded surface on the applicator 2100. If the applicator 2100 is formed of a generally conformable tape or film, it may be preferable to provide guide pins 2110 as separate members which the tape of film may connect to, and the guide pins 2110 may be any suitable material, including hard or soft metals or plastics.

Similar to cartridge 1000, cartridge 2000 may include a tape with nail polish formulation positioned thereon. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 21A, the tape may include a transfer film 600 similar or identical to the transfer film 600 described above, and is thus not described in further detail here. Although not shown, a support layer, which may be similar to support layer 900′ described above, may be provided on the backside of the transfer film 600 so the support layer 900′ is positioned between the transfer film 600 and the applicator 2100. As with cartridge 1000, the above-described nail polish formulation 300 may be provided on transfer film 600 so as to face a user's fingernail in an operative condition, the nail polish formulation 300 having any desired formulation and/or configuration described above. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 21A, nail polish formulation is provided on transfer film 600 in a plurality of “windows” or discrete areas, although in other embodiments the nail polish formulation may be provided as a continuous layer. In particular, at the point in the manicure shown in FIG. 21A, one window of nail polish formulation 2300 a has already been applied to the user's fingernail. Nail polish formulation 2300 a is shown as having already been cured, for example using pre-curing (which may also be referred to as inverse curing) as described above (and in more detail below), prior to having been applied to the user's fingernail. As a result, the uncured portion of nail polish formulation (which is shown as missing from nail polish formulation window 2300 a in FIG. 21A) between the cured portions of nail polish formulation was already deposited onto the user's fingernail, and the transfer film 600 is being advanced in preparation for the next deposition of nail polish formulation 2300 b in the next window. Thus, at the stage of the manicure illustrated in FIG. 21A, nail polish formulation window 2300 a may be considered as used or spent. As with embodiments described above, in order to advance the transfer film 600 in preparation for the next deposition, take-up roller 2030 may be rotated, for example in the counter-clockwise direction CCW illustrated in FIG. 21A. In addition, or alternatively, the supply roller 2020 may rotate, for example also in the counter-clockwise direction CCW illustrated in FIG. 21A, to advance the transfer film 600 in order to position the next window of nail polish formulation 2300 b adjacent the applicator 2100. A third window of nail polish formulation 2300 c is also illustrated in FIG. 21A, this third window for application to the user's fingernail following application of the window of nail polish formulation 2300 b. In the state of the manicure shown in FIG. 21, nail polish formulation windows 2300 b and 2300 c are not yet cured.

FIG. 21B illustrates cartridge 2000 after the take-up roller 2030 and/or supply roller 2020 have advanced transfer film 600 so that the window of nail polish 2300 b is positioned adjacent applicator 2100 and generally between the guide pins 2110. At this point, the window of nail polish 2300 b may undergo a pre-curing process to cure some areas of the window of nail polish formulation 2300 b on the periphery of the window, while leaving uncured a center portion of the window of nail polish formulation 2300 b. The pre-cure may be performed using energy source 50′, in substantially a similar manner as described above in connection with FIG. 10A. For example, the boundaries of the user's fingernail may be detected via any suitable method, including through the use of an optical sensor as described above. That information may be used to determine which portions of the window of nail polish formulation 2300 b are likely to be transferred to the user's fingernail upon deposition, and which portions of the window of nail polish formulation 2300 b are likely to be transferred onto the user's skin outside the boundaries of the user's fingernail. This excess nail polish area of nail polish window 2300 b may be cured, for example via energy source 50′ directing curing energy 51′ (which may be UV energy) only to the excess nail polish area. Similar to as described in connection with FIG. 10A, the curvature of the fingernail, as well as the substantially linear shape of the nail polish formulation window 2300 b that will be applied onto the curved fingernail, may be taken into account when determining which areas of nail polish formulation window 2300 b to pre-cure. The substantially linear shape of the nail polish formulation window 2300 b may result, at least in part, with assistance from the transfer film 600 extending between, and being in contact with, guide pins 2110.

Referring now to FIG. 21C, after the window of nail polish formulation 2300 b has been pre-cured, the cartridge 2000 may be positioned so that the applicator 2100 is positioned above the user's finger 400 and fingernail 410. If the cartridge 2000 moved laterally to be positioned directly positioned over energy source 50′, it may be moved laterally again to position applicator 2100 directly over the user's fingernail 410. Otherwise, if the cartridge 2000 is stationary in the lateral or side-to-side direction, the user's finger 400 may be positioned directly under the applicator 2100 upon placing his or her finger 400 in the manicure system. For example, the housing that houses cartridge 2000 may have a single generally finger-sized aperture so that, when the user inserts his or her finger 400 into that aperture, it will be positioned directly underneath the applicator 2100 of cartridge 2000 when the cartridge 2000 is loaded into the manicure system. FIG. 21C illustrates an outline of the housing or casing 2400 of cartridge 2000 in dashed lines, although it should be understood that the casing 2400 may take any suitable shape. Casing 2400 may be generally similar to the cartridge 1000 illustrated in FIGS. 20A-B, and may include an open bottom to allow for portions of the transfer film 600 and/or nail polish formulation window 2300 b adjacent the applicator 2100 to be exposed for contact with a user's finger 400. Additional contours or openings may be provided in casing 2400 to allow for the user's fingernail 410 to be at least partially surrounded by applicator 2100, as shown in FIG. 21D. Further, casing 2400 may include additional features to allow for the cartridge 2000 to be received within, or coupled to, components within the manicure system so that the cartridge 2000 can readily be inserted into the system prior to use, and removed from the system for disposal following the manicure.

Now referring to FIG. 21D, once the nail polish formulation window 2300 b has been pre-cured and the user's finger 400 is positioned underneath the applicator 2100, the cartridge 2000 may be driven downward toward the user's fingernail 410, similar to that described in connection with FIGS. 19C-D. As the transfer film 600 begins to contact the user's fingernail 410, the transfer film 600 may conform to the shape of the applicator 2100 and/or the user's fingernail 410, with the uncured portion of the nail polish formulation window 2300 b contacting the user's fingernail 410. As the transfer film 600 contacts the user's fingernail 410, it may be preferable for the supply roller 2020 and/or the take-up roller 2030 to be loose or capable of passive rotation, so that the transfer film 600 does not stretch (or only minimally stretches) as it conforms to the user's nail 410 and/or the contours of applicator 2100. In some embodiments, the cartridge 2000 is set to move a pre-set distance toward the user's finger 400. In other embodiments, one or more sensors may be used to determine when the travel of cartridge 2000 is stopped. For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 21D, a force sensor 2500 may be provided, for example in a finger support, with the user resting his or her finger 400 on the force sensor 2500 during the deposition of the nail polish formulation 2300 b. The cartridge 2000 may be advanced until the force sensor 2500 registers a pre-set force threshold, at which point movement of the cartridge 2000 toward the finger 400 may be halted. In other embodiments, a force sensor may be provided at the connection between the cartridge 2000 and the manicure system housing, with the movement being stopped upon registration of a threshold force. Other sensor systems may be used in addition or alternatively to assist with limiting the movement of the cartridge 2000 toward the user's finger 400, including optical sensors or the like.

After the window of nail polish formulation 2300 b is in sufficient contact with the user's fingernail 410, the cartridge 2000 may move linearly away from the user's fingernail 410. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 21E, as the cartridge 2000 moves away from the user's fingernail 410 (or after the cartridge 2000 has moved away from the user's fingernail 410), the supply roller 2020 and/or take-up roller 2030 may rotate to pull the transfer film 600 taught. For example, the take-up roller 2030 may rotate in a counterclockwise CCW direction while the supply roller 2020 may rotate in a clockwise CW direction, shown in FIG. 21E, to pull the transfer film 600 taut over the guide pins 2110 of the applicator 2100 and away from the user's fingernail 410. Similar to embodiments described above, the uncured portion of the window of nail polish formulation 2300 b may transfer to the user's fingernail 410 in a manner that substantially covers the entire fingernail 410, including the proximal and lateral folds. On the other hand, the pre-cured portions of the window of nail polish formulation 2300 b, may remain on the transfer film 600 and not transfer to the user's finger 400 or fingernail 410. Because the pre-cure process precisely pre-cured only the excess nail polish formulation, the uncured nail polish formulation will closely match the detected shape of the user's fingernail 410 for accurate coverage of the fingernail 410.

After the cartridge 2000 is in the position shown in FIG. 21E, the nail polish formulation deposited on the user's fingernail 410 may be cured. Because of the precision of the deposition, a bulk curing process may be performed on the nail polish formulation on the fingernail, in which energy is not selectively applied, but rather applied to a large area including the fingernail in order to cure the nail polish formulation on the fingernail. However, in other embodiments, selective curing similar to that described in embodiments above may be performed. In either case, the cartridge 2100 may be moved out of the way prior to such curing, if desired, to ensure that the curing energy may reach the user's fingernail. Before or after curing the nail polish formulation on the user's fingernail 410, the take-up roller 2030 (and the supply roller 2020, if desired) may be rotated to advance the transfer film 600 into a position similar to that shown in FIG. 21A in preparation for either depositing another layer of the nail polish formulation to the user's fingernail (either of the same finger or another finger). As with the embodiment described in connection with FIGS. 19A-20B, the process may be repeated until the desired numbers and types of nail polish formulation have been deposited onto the desired number of fingernails of the user, and the manicure is completed. The cartridge 2000 may then be removed from the manicure system and disposed of easily and cleanly. When the next manicure is desired, the user can insert a fresh cartridge 2000 into the manicure system and repeat the process.

It should be understood that, although different embodiments with various features have been described above, features from some embodiments may be combined with features from other embodiments as appropriate. For example, the pre-curing methodology may be used with the system and method described in connection with FIGS. 19A-20B, and the pre-curing methodology may be omitted from the system and method described in connection with FIGS. 21A-E. If pre-curing is omitted from the system and method of FIGS. 21A-E, the final curing of the nail polish formulation on the user's fingernail may be done via a selective and price curing method, instead of a bulk or flash cure. In other words, the features of various embodiments herein may be combined with, or altered based on, features described in connection with other embodiments herein, without departing from the scope of the invention.

It should further be understood that, although various concepts are described herein in connection with a specific application of manicure systems, the concepts may be applied in a similar fashion in other types of applications without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, the pre-curing (or inverse curing) methodology may be used in other applications in which it is desirable to transfer a curable formulation (such as a curable resin, including a UV-curable formulation or resin) from an applicator film or pad to an object, while doing so with high precision. Although the object described above is a fingernail, the object can be any objected adapted to receive a resin thereon. For example, the pre-curing method may be used with pad press technology in which an applicator pad, which may be generally similar to pad 100 shown and described in connection with FIGS. 10A-D, is used to deposit a formulation and/or resin onto an object. The pre-curing or inverse curing method may also be used with transfer films instead of, or in addition to, applicator pads. If it is desirable to print a logo, for example, on many objects, the many copies of the logo may be provided on a template. If the logo is ink or another resin that can be deposited, the applicator pad may be rolled over (or otherwise contacted with) the logo on the template to transfer the logo from the template to the applicator pad. Then, in a second step, the applicator pad may be pressed onto the object to transfer the logo from the applicator pad onto the object. This process may be conceptually similar to the above descriptions of picking up nail polish formulation onto an applicator pad, and then pressing the applicator pad onto a fingernail to transfer the nail polish formulation from the applicator pad to the fingernail.

If a pad press technology is to be used to print the same logo or design onto a large number of objects, a template may be suitable because a single identical logo or design is to be transferred again and again. Thus, the ink or resin may be placed into the template, the applicator pad may pick up the logo or design from the template and apply it to a first object, and the process may be continued repeatedly. However, if there is a desire to use pad press technology to apply different logos or designs to objects, the use of templates may not be preferable since a template can only produce a single logo or design. In order to provide the ability to use pad press technology to apply designs or logos to an object with any desired variety of design or logo, curable resins may be used with the pre-curing or inverse curing technology described above. For example, a strip of curable resin may be provided, similar to any of the strips or tapes described above, such as that shown and described in connection with FIGS. 15A-15C. The shape and/or dimensions of the desired logo or design may be stored in a computer device or memory that is operatively coupled to an energy source, which may be similar to energy source 50′. Prior to the applicator pad pressing the strip containing the resin on to the object, the energy source 50′ may be used to perform a pre-curing step, in which areas of the curable resin outside the dimensions of the desired logo or design are cured. Thus, the remaining un-cured resin on the strip has the shape of the desired logo or design. Then, the applicator pad may be advanced to press the strip of partially pre-cured resin onto the desired object to transfer the uncured resin onto the object. Whereas the object in the description above is general a fingernail, the object may be any object. Because the pre-curing or inverse curing will tend to cause the pre-cured resin to remain on the strip, and the uncured resin to transfer to the object which the resin contacts, the desired design will be transferred from the strip to the object after the applicator pad presses the strip onto the object. The transferred design or logo may then be cured by applying curing energy, for example in a bulk cure, to form the desired design on the object. Because the pre-curing or inverse curing can be performed in any desired design by simply feeding the shape and/or dimension data into a system operatively coupled to the energy source 50′, the design to be transferred from the strip to an object can be rapidly changed so that the use of templates becomes unnecessary.

Example 1: Preparation of a Nail Polish Formulation

Component % by Weight Sartomer CN 963 urethane diacrylate 67.5 Esstech PL-7210 urethane diacrylate 20.0 Esstech PL-TPO-L 2, 4, 5.0 6-trimethylbenzoyldiphenylphosphine Oxide Sigma Aldrich cellulose acetate butyrate 1.5 Sensient Red 7 pigment 6.0 The cellulose acetate butyrate is dissolved in butyl acetate and added to the CN 963 urethane diacrylate and TPO with a small amount of butyl acetate. The components are mixed in a centrifugal mixer. To this is added the PL-7210 and mixed. The pigment is added and formulation is mixed to a solution for suitable for spray coating and having a viscosity of 100 cP. The viscosity of dried component is 2 to 3 million cP.

Although the invention herein has been described with reference to particular embodiments, it is to be understood that these embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and applications of the present invention. It is therefore to be understood that numerous modifications may be made to the illustrative embodiments and that other arrangements may be devised without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims. 

1. A method of applying a curable formulation to an object, comprising: positioning an amount of formulation on a surface before curing the formulation, the formulation being curable by an electromagnetic energy; while the amount of formulation remains on the surface, directing a first amount of the electromagnetic energy to the formulation to cure a first area of the uncured formulation, while leaving a second area of the formulation uncured; and applying force to press the surface onto the object to transfer the second area of uncured formulation to the object.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising directing a second amount of the electromagnetic energy to the second area of uncured formulation that has been transferred to the object to cure the second area of uncured formulation.
 3. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting a shape of the object prior to directing the first amount of the electromagnetic energy to the formulation.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein directing the first amount of the electromagnetic energy to the formulation includes directing the first amount of the electromagnetic energy in a pattern that leaves the second area of uncured formulation in a shape corresponding to the detected shape of the object.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the formulation is a nail polish formulation, and the object is a fingernail.
 6. The method of claim 2, wherein directing the second amount of the electromagnetic energy to the second area of uncured formulation includes selectively curing the second area of uncured formulation.
 7. The method of claim 2, wherein directing the second amount of the electromagnetic energy to the second area of uncured formulation includes bulk curing the second area of uncured formulation.
 8. The method of claim 2, wherein the first amount of electromagnetic energy is directed from a first source of electromagnetic energy, and the second amount of electromagnetic energy is directed from the first source of electromagnetic energy.
 9. The method of claim 2, wherein the first amount of electromagnetic energy is directed from a first source of electromagnetic energy, and the second amount of electromagnetic energy is directed from a second source of electromagnetic energy different than the first source.
 10. A method of using a nail polish application system, the method comprising: positioning a nail polish application component within the nail polish application system, the nail polish application component having a plurality of areas of nail polish formulation positioned on a transfer film of the nail polish application component; positioning a user's first fingernail at least partially in the nail polish application system so that a first one of the plurality of areas of nail polish formulation confronts the user's first fingernail; engaging the nail polish application component with the user's first fingernail so that an amount of the first one of the plurality of areas of nail polish formulation transfers from the transfer film to the user's first fingernail; nail polish formulation nail polish formulation positioning a second fingernail of the user at least partially in the nail polish application system; after engaging the nail polish application component with the user's first fingernail, positioning a portion of the nail polish application component so that a second one of the plurality of areas of nail polish formulation confronts the user's second fingernail; and engaging the nail polish application component with the user's second fingernail so that an amount of the second one of the plurality of areas of nail polish formulation transfers from the transfer film to the user's second fingernail.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the first one of the plurality of areas of nail polish formulation and the second one of the plurality of areas of nail polish formulation are continuous with each other on the transfer film.
 12. The method of claim 10, wherein the first one of the plurality of areas of nail polish formulation is discrete and spaced apart from the second one of the plurality of areas of nail polish formulation on the transfer film.
 13. The method of claim 10, wherein the transfer film stretches to match contours of the user's first fingernail as the nail polish application component engages the user's first fingernail.
 14. The method of claim 10, wherein the transfer film is formed of a silicone, a thermoplastic elastomer (“TPE”), or a thermoplastic polyurethane (“TPU”).
 15. A nail polish application component for use with a nail polish application system, the nail polish application component comprising: a transfer film having a nail polish formulation positioned on the transfer film, the nail polish formulation being curable by an electromagnetic energy and including a first area of nail polish formulation and a second area of nail polish formulation; the nail polish application component having a storage condition in which a protective covering covers the nail polish formulation to prevent the electromagnetic energy from passing through the protective layer to cure the nail polish formulation; the nail polish application component having an operative condition in which the nail polish application component is received within the nail polish application system and the nail polish formulation is exposed to allow the electromagnetic energy to cure the nail polish formulation; wherein, in the operative condition of the nail polish application component, the transfer film is advanceable from a first position in which the first area of nail polish formulation confronts a user's fingernail positioned within the nail polish application system to a second position in which the second area of nail polish formulation confronts the user's fingernail positioned within the nail polish application system.
 16. The nail polish application component of claim 15, wherein the nail polish formulation on the transfer film has a thickness of between about 50 μm and about 400 μm.
 17. The nail polish application component of claim 15, wherein the first area of nail polish formulation and the second area of nail polish formulation are continuous with each other on the transfer film.
 18. The nail polish application component of claim 15, wherein the first area of nail polish formulation is discrete and spaced apart from the second of area of nail polish formulation on the transfer film.
 19. The nail polish application component of claim 15, wherein the transfer film is formed of a silicone, a thermoplastic polyurethane (“TPU”), or a thermoplastic elastomer (“TPE”).
 20. The nail polish application component of claim 15, wherein the transfer film is configured to stretch to match contours of the user's fingernail as the nail polish application component engages with the user's fingernail. 